“…The compound zaragozic acid, also known as squalestatin, is a carboxylic acid, with the molecular structure C 35 H 43 O 14 Na 3 (2,8-dioxabicyclo-[3.2.1]-octan-3 core acid, 4,5-tricarboxylic), that was discovered by screening metabolites of filamentous fungi for inhibitors of squalene synthase, the enzyme responsible for the first step of sterol biosynthesis (18)(19)(20)(21). Detailed analysis disclosed that it acts as a competitive inhibitor of squalene synthase by mimicking the farnesyl-PP substrate or the stable intermediate pres-qualene-PP with its bicyclic, highly acidic core (22).…”