Evaluation of 3-hydroxy-3- methylglutaryl-CoA reductase activity by multiplet-selected ion monitoring

A new method for the evaluation of 3-hydroxy-3-methylglutaryl-CoA reductase activity is described, based on the multiple-selected ion monitoring of the amount of mevalonate formed in incubations of 3-hydroxy-3-methylglutaryl-CoA with microsomal proteins. Analysis is carried out on crude extracts using deuterated mevalonic acid lactone as internal standard. The sensitivity of the technique allows the quantitative evaluation of mevalonate in microassays (100 μg microsomal protein) of the enzyme activity at the minimum value of the diurnal rhythm.