Vitamin D 3 requires the 25-hydroxylation in the liver and the subsequent 1␣-hydroxylation in the kidney to exert its biological activity. Vitamin D 3 25-hydroxylation is hence an essential modification step for vitamin D 3 activation. Until now, three cytochrome P450 molecular species (CYP27A1, CYP2C11, and CYP2D25) have been characterized well as vitamin D 3 25-hydroxylases. However, their physiological role remains unclear because of their broad substrate specificities and low activities toward vitamin D 3 relative to other substrates. In this study, we purified vitamin D 3 25-hydroxylase from female rat liver microsomes. The activities of the purified fraction toward vitamin D 3 and 1␣-hydroxyvitamin D 3 were 1.1 and 13 nmol/min/nmol of P450, respectively. The purified fraction showed a few protein bands in a 50 -60-kDa range on SDS-PAGE, typical for a cytochrome P450. The tryptic peptide mass fingerprinting of a protein band (56 kDa) with matrix-assisted laser desorption ionization/time of flight mass spectrometry identified this band as CYP2J3. CYP2J3 was heterologously expressed in Escherichia coli. Purified recombinant CYP2J3 showed strong 25-hydroxylation activities toward vitamin D 3 and 1␣-hydroxyvitamin D 3 with turnover numbers of 3.3 and 22, respectively, which were markedly higher than those of P450s previously characterized as 25-hydroxylases. Quantitative PCR analysis showed that CYP2J3 mRNA is expressed at a level similar to that of CYP27A1 without marked sexual dimorphism. These results strongly suggest that CYP2J3 is the principal P450 responsible for vitamin D 3 25-hydroxylation in rat liver. The most important physiological function described for 1,25-(OH) 2 D 3 is maintenance of calcium homeostasis (a process that involves calcium absorption from the intestine, reabsorption from the kidney, and mobilization from the bone) (2, 3, 5). In addition, involvement in a variety of processes such as cell differentiation and proliferation has been reported (1, 3). In the 1990s, two important kidney mitochondrial cytochrome P450s involved in vitamin D 3 metabolism were identified. One is CYP27B1, which catalyzes the 1␣-hydroxylation reaction, essential for vitamin D 3 activation. Its expression is regulated by parathyroid hormone, 1,25-(OH) 2 D 3 , and calcitonin (6 -11). The genetic defect of the gene results in pseudovitamin D deficiency rickets (12). The other is CYP24, which directs the catabolism of 1,25-(OH) 2 D 3 and 25-OH-D 3 by the hydroxylation at position C-24. The expression of this gene is primarily controlled by 1,25-(OH) 2 D 3 via a vitamin D receptor (13, 14). These two enzymes are apparently regulated in a reciprocal manner depending on physiological factors concerning calcium homeostasis, by which the biological activity of vitamin D 3 is maintained at appropriate levels in the body (1).In contrast to the 1␣-hydroxylase and 24-hydroxylase in kidney, the 25-hydroxylase of vitamin D 3 in liver remains not fully understood, although 25-OH-D 3 is the major circulation form of vitamin D ...