Hydrogenation process for the formation of 3,5-dihydro HMG-CoA reductase inhibitors

摘要

A novel hydrogenation process, using a homogenous iridium or rhodium catalyst for selectively adding hydrogen to the 3,5 positions in the polyhydronaphthyl ring of lovastatin, simvastatin or C-8-acyl or C-6-substituted analogs thereof, is disclosed.