Abietamide derivatives, their production and use

A process for the preparation of amide derivatives of abietic acid, dehydroabietic acid, dihydroabietic acid or tetrahydroabietic acid which comprises reacting abietic acid, dehydroabietic acid, dihydroabietic acid or tetrahydroabietic acid or a reactive derivative thereof with an amine of the following formula: HNRR' wherein R and R' are each hydrogen, a straight chain or branched alkyl group having 3 to 15 carbon atoms, a lower alkenyl group, a cycloalkyl group, a phenyl group, a phenylalkyl group and a phenylalkyl group having a lower alkyl group at the alpha -position, with the proviso that such amines where both R and R' are hydrogen or where one of R and R' is hydrogen and the other is phenyl are excluded. The invention further comprises the resulting abietamide derivative reaction products, compositions containing effective blood serum cholesterol-reducing amounts of said abietamide derivatives and their use as anti-arteriosclerotic agents.