Natural 25,26-dihydroxyvitamin D3 is an epimeric mixture.

Radiolabeled 25,26-dihydroxyvitamin D3 was prepared in vitro by using chicken kidney homogenates and in vivo in rats from [23,24-3H]-25-hydroxyvitamin D3. These compounds were mixed with synthetic (25S)- and (25R)-25,26-dihydroxyvitamin D3, converted to the corresponding (+)-alpha-methoxy-alpha-trifluoromethylphenylacetyl esters, and subjected to high-performance liquid chromatography that separates the derivatized epimers. The radiolabeled 25,26-dihydroxyvitamin D3 derivatives were a 1:1 mixture of the 25S and 25R isomers. Similarly unlabeled 25,26-dihydroxyvitamin D3 isolated from the plasma of rats given large amounts of vitamin D3 was shown to be a 1:1 mixture of the S and R isomers. Therefore, naturally occurring 25,26-dihydroxyvitamin D3 is a mixture of the 25R and 25S isomers and not just the S isomer reported previously.