METHOD FOR PREPARING VITAMIN D COMPOUNDS

Abstract: One or two hydroxyl groups are introduced into vitamin D compounds at the 1-alpha- and/or 25-positions by use of a solution containing the mycelium of Actinomycetales which is capable of hydroxylating vitamin D compound or the enzyme produced from the mycelium.

Description: The present invention relates to a method for preparing hydroxyvitamin D compounds using microorganisms. It is very difficult to directly introduce hydroxyl groups into Vitamin D compounds at the 1α- and/or 25-positions by the method of organic synthesis, and such introduction has not yet been reported. Furthermore, any methods of enzymatic chemistry for introducing directly hydroxyl group into vitamin D compounds using microorganism have not yet been reported, either. It was possible in the past to directly introduce hydroxyl groups into vitamin D compounds at the 1α- and/or 25-positions by the method of enzymatic chemistry using animal organs. Namely, methods were known for introducing directly a hydroxyl group at the 1α-position using the homogenate or mitochondoria fractions of kidney of animals such as chicken [Nature, vol. 230, P. 228 (1971), J. Biolog. Chem. vol. 247, p. 7528 (1972), and Biochemistry, vol. 25, p. 5512 (1986)]. In addition, methods were known for introducing directly a hydroxyl group at the 25-position by perfusing a solution containing vitamin D compound with liver collected from animals such as rats [J. Clin. Invest., vol. 48, p.2032 (1969), and Biochem. Biophys. Res. Commun., vol. 66, p. 632 (1975)] or using the homogenate of liver of animals such as rats [Biochem. Biophys. Res. Commun., vol. 36, p. 251 (1969)]. However, the methods of enzymatic chemistry using animal organs require a large amount of kidney or liver of animals, and the preparation of such organs is very time-consuming. Accordingly, these methods are ineffective and impractical. We have found a method of introducing hydroxyl groups into the vitamin D compounds at 1α- and/or 25-positions using particular microorganisms. The present invention provides a method in accordance with any one of claims 6 to 9 hereinafter and also provides a method for preparing a 1α- or 25-hydroxyvitamin D compound which comprises adding a vitamin D compound having a hydrogen atom at the 1α- or 25-position to a reaction mixture containing a mycelium of certain genera of the family Actinomycetales , namely Streptomyces and Nocardia , being capable of hydroxylating vitamin D compound, or a reaction mixture containing the enzyme produced from the mycelium and converting the hydrogen atom into a hydroxyl group. The invention also provides a method for preparing a 25-hydroxyvitamin D compound or 1α, 25-dihydroxy vitamin D compound which comprises adding a vitamin D compound having hydrogen atoms at the 1α- and 25-positions to a reaction mixture containing a mycelium of Streptomyces or Norcardia being capable of hydroxylating the vitamin D compound or a reaction mixture containing the enzyme produced from the mycelium and converting the hydrogen atoms into hydroxyl groups. In carrying out the present invention using the vitamin D compounds having a hydrogen atom at the 1α- or 25-position, the hydrogen atom can be converted into a hydroxyl group. In case where the vitamin D compounds having hydrogen atoms at the 1α- and 25-positions are used, first the hydrogen atom at the 25-position can be converted into a hydroxyl group, then the hydrogen atom at the 1α-position can be converted into a hydroxyl group. The present invention is a method by which hydroxyl groups can be introduced into the vitamin D compound at the 1α- and/or 25-positions directly in one step, and the vitamin D compound may have any substitutents at any positions other than the 1α- or 25-position. Accordingly, the vitamin D compounds used in the present invention include the vitamin D₂ series and vitamin D₃ series wherein the hydrogen atom or hydroxyl group at the 17-position side chain may be substituted by a halogen atom (e.g., a fluorine atom), a hydroxyl group, a lower alkyl group and the like. When the material vitamin D compound has a substituent other than a hydrogen atom at the 1α- or 25-position, one of the preferred substituent is a hydroxyl group. Examples of the vitamin D compounds are vitamin D₂, vitamin D₃, 1α-hydroxyvitamin D₃, 1α, 24-dihydroxyvitamin D₃, 25-hydroxyvitamin D₃, 25-hydroxyvitamin D₂, 24, 25-dibydroxyvitamin D₃, 23, 25-dibydroxyvitamin D₃, 25, 26-dihydroxyvitamin D₃, 23, 24, 25-trihydroxyvitamin D₃, 24, 24-difluoro-25-hydroxy-26, 27-dimethylvitamin D₃, 25-hydroxy-26, 26, 26, 27, 27, 27-hexafluorovitamin D₃ and the like. The Actinomycetales used in the present invention are those being capable of introducing hydroxyl groups into vitamin D compounds at the 1α- and/or 25-positions, namely genus Nocardia and genus Streptomyces . Preferred are the strains which were newly isolated from a soil sample which are collected at Omiya-city, Saitama Prefecture, Japan, and was deposited on 28th May, 1987 with Fermentation Research Institute, the Agency of Industrial Science and Technology under the name of " Streptomyces sclerotialus T-JS1" with Deposition Number FERM BP-1370, the strain which was newly isolated from a soil sample collected by the present inventors at Torisawa-mura, Minamitsuru-gun, Yamanashi Prefecture, Japan, and was deposited on 20th Nov. 1987 with Fermentation Research Institute, the Agency of Industrial Science and Technology under the name of " Streptomyces roseosporus A-5797" with Deposition Number FERM BP-1574, and the strain which was newly isolated from a soil sample collected by the present inventors at Omiya-city, Saitama Prefecture, Japan, and was deposited on 20th Nov., 1987 with Fermentation Research Institute, the Agency of Industrial Science and Technology under the name of " Nocardia autotrophica N-102" with Deposition Number FERM BP-1573. The morphological properties of these strains are as follows. a. Streptomyces sclerotialus T-JS1 1) Morphology Vegetative mycelium can grow well on synthetic agar media and natural agar media with branching. Aerial mycelium is poorly developed on yeast-malt extract agar, oatmeal agar, inorganic salts-starch agar and glycerolasparagine agar. The aerial mycelium branches monopodially with spiral spore chains. Usually, the spore chains have ten or more spores with smooth surface. The spore is cylindrical in shape and 0.57-1.0 x 0.64-1.4 µm in size. The spiral spore chains grow on inorganic salts-starch agar medium abundantly. Sclerotia in the vegetative mycelium is observed. When cultivation is carried out on yeast-malt extract agar medium for 2 weeks, the coalesced masses of spores having the morphology similar to that of sporangia are observed. Flagellated spore is not observed. 2) Growth on media The cultivation was carried out on various media at 28°C for 14 days, and the results of the macroscopic observation are shown in Table 1. Medium Growth on Medium Color of Reverse Side of Colonies Aerial mycelium Soluble Pigment Formation Color Sucrose-nitrate agar moderate pale yellow elevated pale brown poor - none Glucose-asparagine agar moderate creamy moist pale brown slightly formed creamy none Glycerol asparagine agar moderate creamy moist wrinkle pale brown poor - none Inorganic salts-starch agar good creamy elevated creamy slightly formed white none Tyrosine agar moderate creamy elevated creamy slightly formed creamy none Nutrient agar moderate creamy moist wrinkle creamy poor - none Yeast-malt extract agar moderate creamy moist yellowish brown slightly formed creamy none Oatmeal agar moderate creamy moist pale brown slightly formed creamy none Peptone-yeast-iron agar moderate pale yellow moist wrinkle pale brown poor - none 3) Physiological properties (1) Temperature range for Growth The optimum temperature for growth is between 25°C and 37°C on inorganic salts-starch agar. There is no growth at 10°C or below, or at 45°C or above. (2) Biochemical Properties a) Distinction between aerobic and anaerobic: aerobic b) Liquefaction of gelatin: positive c) Coagulation of skim milk: negative d) Peptonization of skim milk: positive e) Hydrolysis of starch: positive f) Formation of melanin-like pigment: negative 3) Utilization of carbon sources (Pridham/Godlieb agar medium) All of the following carbon sources are utilized. D-glucose, D-fructose, inositol, galactose, starch, sucrose, rhamnose, D-mannitol, L-arabinose, D-xylose, raffinose, It is apparent from the above properties that this strain belongs to Actinomycetales . These properties were compared with those of strains reported in I.S.P., The International Streptomyces Project; Bergey's Manual of Determinative Bacteriology, 8th edition (1974); and Waxman's, The Actinomycetes, vol. 2 (1961), and this strain was found to be most similar to Streptomyces sclerotialus . As a result of the above, this strain is concluded to be the same species as Streptomyces sclerotialus and named Streptmyces sclerotialus T-JS1. b. Streptomyces roseosporus A-5797 1) Morphology Vegetative mycelium grows well on synthetic agar media and natural agar media with branching irregularly. No septum is observed. Spore chains are formed abundantly on glycerol-asparagine agar, inorganic salts-starch agar, oatmeal agar and the like. By microscopic observation, the aerial mycelium branches monopodially with straight spore chains. The spore chains have ten or more spores, and the long spore chains are developed at the stationary phase of the culture. The spore is smooth in surface, oval in shape and 0.67 - 0.75 µm x 1.30 - 1.58 µm in size. Sclerotia, sporangia and flagellated spores are not observed. 2) Growth on media The cultivation was carried out on various media at 30°C for 14 days, and the results of the macroscopic observation are shown in Table 2. Medium Growth on Medium Color of Reverse Side of Colonies Aerial mycelium Soluble Pigment Formation Color Sucrose-nitrate agar moderate creamy slightly poor creamy none Glucose-asparagine agar moderate creamy slightly poor creamy none Glycerol asparagine agar good pale yellow good light grayish red none Inorganic salt-starch agar good pale yellow good light grayish red none Tyrosine agar good pale yellow good light grayish red none Nutrient agar moderate creamy none - none Yeast-malt extract agar good pale yellow good light grayish red none Oatmeal agar good creamy good light grayish red none Peptone-yeast-iron agar good pale brown none - none 3) Physiological properties (1) Temperature range for Growth The optimum temperature for growth is between 20°C and 30°C on oatmeal agar. There is no growth at 10°C or below, or at 40°C or above. (2) Biochemical Properties a) Distinction between aerobic and anaerobic: aerobic b) Liquefaction of gelatin: positive c) Coagulation of skim milk: negative d) Peptonization of skim milk: positive e) Hydrolysis of starch: positive f) Formation of melanin-like pigment: negative g) Cell wall type: I 3) Utilization of carbon sources (Pridham/Godlieb agar medium Utilizable: D-glucose, L-arabinose, D-xylose, Slightly utilizable: D-fructose, rhamnose, Not utilizable: sucrose, inositol, raffinose, D-mannitol It is apparent from the above properties that this strain belongs to Actinomycetales . These properties were compared with those of strains reported in I.S.P., The International Streptomyces Project; Bergey's Manual of Determinative Bacteriology, 8th edition (1974); and Waxman's, The Actinomycetes, vol. 2 (1961), and this strain was found to be most similar to Streptomyces roseosporus . As a result of the above, this strain is concluded to be the same species as Streptomyces roseosporus and named as Streptmyces roseosporus A-5797. c. Nocardia autotrophica N-102 Vegetative mycelium grows well on synthetic agar media and natural agar media with branching irregularly. No septum is observed. Spore chains are formed abundantly on glycerol-asparagine agar, inorganic salts-starch agar and the like. By microscopic observations, the aerial mycelium branches monopodially with straight spore chains. The spore chains have 3 or more spores, and the long spore chains are developed at the stationary phase of the culture. The spore is smooth in surface, cylindrical in shape and 0.5-0.8 µm x 2.5-4.3 µm in size. Sclerotia, sporangia and flagellated spores are not observed. 2) Growth on media The cultivation was carried out on various media at 30°C for 14 days, and the results of the macroscopic observation are shown in Table 3. Medium Growth on Medium Color of Reverse Side of Colonies Aerial mycelium Soluble Pigment Formation Color Sucrose-nitrate agar moderate pale brown moderate creamy none Glucose-asparagine agar slightly poor creamy moderate white none Glycerol-asparagine agar good pale yellow good white none Inorganic salt-starch agar moderate creamy good white none Tyrosine agar moderate reddish brown good creamy pale reddish brown Nutrient agar good pale yellow good white none Yeast-malt extract agar good pale yellow slightly poor white none Oatmeal agar moderate creamy slightly poor white none Peptone-yeast-iron agar moderate pale brown moderate creamy none 3) Physiological properties (1) Temperature range for Growth The optimum temperature for growth is between 20°C and 30°C on nutrient agar. There is no growth at 10°C or below, or at 45°C or above. (2) Biochemical Properties a) Distinction between aerobic and anaerobic: aerobic b) Liquefaction of gelatin: negative c) Coagulation of skim milk: negative d) Peptonization of skim milk: negative e) Hydrolysis of starch: negative f) Formation of melanin-like pigment: negative g) Nitrate reduction: negative (3) Utilization of carbon sources (Pridham/Godlieb agar medium) Utilizable: D-glucose, L-arabinose, sucrose, D-xylose, L-inositol, D-mannitol, D-fructose, rhamnose Slightly utilizable: raffinose It is apparent from the above properties that this strain belongs to Actinomycetales . These properties were compared with those of strains reported in I.S.P., The International Streptomyces Project; Bergey's Manual of Determinative Bacteriology, 8th edition (1974); and Waxman's, The Actinomycetes, vol. 2 (1961), and this strain was found to be most similar to Nocardia autotrophica . As a result of the above, this strain is concluded to be the same species as Nocardia autotrophica and named Nocardia autotrophica N-102. The present invention can be carried out by the reaction of the substrate vitamin D compound in a solution containing the mycelium of the strain belonging to the germs Streptomyces or Norcardia or a solution containing the enzyme, which solution may be prepared from the mycelium under the aerobic conditions. In order to obtain the mycelium of the germs necessary for the reaction, cultivation can be carried out in a medium under the aerobic conditions. A liquid medium is chiefly used, the carbon sources used for the medium may be glucose, maltose, dextrose, starch, arabinose and xylose, and they are used alone or in admixture. The nitrogen sources which may be used are polypeptone, casamino acid, yeast extract, meat extract, corn steep liquor, soybean meal and the like, and they are used alone or in admixture. Furthermore, if necessary, organic substances or inorganic salts can be used in order to aid the growth of the strain and to promote the transformation of vitamin D compound having hydroxyl groups at 1α and/or 25-positions. Preferred cultivations of the strain are performed in aerobic conditions such as shaking culture at pH 6 to 7.4 at 28 to 30°C for 2 to 8 days. According to the method of the present invention, the reaction mixture containing the mycelium may be used. Namely, the culture medium is continuously adopted for the reaction mixture. Alternatively, after completion of the cultivation, the mycelium obtained by cultivation is separated by centrifugation or filtration and suspended in a buffer solution in order to be adopted for the reaction mixture. In addition, the supernatant containing the enzyme obtained by sonicating the mycelium is also adopted for the reaction mixture. Preferably, centrifugation is carried out after the sonication in order to obtain the supernatant. The mycelium can be also added to a solution after fixing with optically cross-linking resin prepolymers such as ENT 3400 (trade name, Kansai Paint Co.), urethane prepolymers such as PU-9 (trade name, Toyo Gum Co.) and polysaccharide such as κ-caraginane. Furthermore, the lyophilized mycelium may be used for the same method as described above. Examples of the solution adopted for the reaction mixture in the present invention are the media as described above as well as buffer solutions such as tris-acetate, tris-hydrochloride, sodium succinate-succinic acid, potassium succinate-succinic acid, sodium citrate-citric acid, sodium phosphate, potassium phosphate, sodium phosphate-potassium phosphate, sodium cacodylate-hydrochloric acid, imidazole-hydrochloric acid, sodium borate-boric acid and the like, and they are used alone or in admixture. If necessary, detergents, organic substances and inorganc salts can be added to the reaction mixture in order to aid the growth of the strain and to promote the transformation of vitamin D compound. According to the method of the present invention, in case where the reaction mixture containing the above mycelium or enzyme is used, this reaction mixture is preferably applied to shake or stir at pH 5 to 8, at 20 to 37°C for 5 minutes to 96 hours under aerobic conditions. These procedures can be also carried out under an oxygen atmosphere. The suitable amount of the substrate vitamin D compound can be added at the begining of reaction. In case where the reaction mixture containing the mycelium in culture medium is used, the substrate is added and then the cultivation is further carried out for 24 to 96 hours under the same conditions as described above. In case where the vitamin D compounds having hydrogen atoms at 1α- and 25-positions is used as a substrate, the reaction time can be determined by confirming the product by use of high performance liquid chromatography as described below so as to give the final 25-hydroxyvitamin D compound or 1α, 25-dihydroxyvitamin D compound. Isolation of the vitamin D compound thus obtained can be accomplished by the ordinary method by which the vitamin D is collected and isolated from blood. For example, after completion of the reaction, the reaction mixture is extracted with an organic solution and concentrated to dryness. This is dissolved in a suitable solvent such as 2-propanol-n-hexane, centrifuged to remove the insolubles, and applied to a high performance liquid chromatography using silica gel normal phase column (e.g., Zorbax SIL, column size 4.6 mm  x 25 cm, Du Pont Co., U.S.A.) or silica gel reverse phase column (e.g., Zorbax ODS, column size 4.6 mm  x 25 cm, Du Pont Co., U.S.A.) to isolate the final hydroxy vitamin D compound. The present invention makes it possible to indroduce hydroxyl groups directly into vitamin D compounds at the 1α- and/or 25-positions. Namely, in the method using the microorganism of the present invention, it is not time-consuming to prepare the microorganism and the reaction mixture, and the introduction of hydroxyl groups can be carried out extremely easily and effectively for a short time in one step. The present invention will be illustrated in more detail by the following Examples and Experiment. Example 1 Fifty ml of a sterile liquid medium (pH 7.0) containing 1% of starch, 1% of maltose, 1% of dextrin, 1.5% of soybean meal, 0.3% of meat extract, 0.5% of casamino acid and 0.4% of calcium carbonate, in each of five 500 ml Erlenmeyer flasks, was inoculated with one platinum loop of Streptomyces sclerotialus T-JS1, and shaking culture was carried out at 30°C for 48 hours. After completion of the cultivation, the culture medium was centrifuged to collect the mycelium, which was then suspended in 200 ml of a buffer solution (pH 7.4) containing 15 mM tris-acetate, 25 mM sodium succinate, 2 mM magnesium acetate and 200 mM sucrose (hereinafter referred to as "Buffer solution A"). This suspension was again centrifuged to collect the mycelium, which was then suspended in 200 ml of Buffer solution A with thorough stirring. Forty ml of the suspension was placed in each of five 500 ml Erlenmeyer flasks and kept warm to 30°C for 5 minutes. A solution of 400 µg of the substrate 25-hydroxyvitamin D₃ in 400 µl of ethanol was added to each of the five Erlenmeyer flasks, and reaction was carried out at 30°C for 45 minutes with shaking. The reaction mixture of the Erlenmeyer flasks were combined, and extracted with 1 ℓ of methylene chloride. The methylene chloride layer was concentrated to dryness at 40°C or below under reduced pressure, immediately dissolved in 7.5 ml of a mixture of 2-propanol and n-hexane (1:9) and allowed to stand at -20°C for 3 hours. The solution was centrifuged to remove the insoluble fractions, and the resulting supernatant was concentrated at 40°C or below under reduced pressure and applied to a high performance liquid chromatography (Zorbax SIL, column size 4.6 mm  x 25 cm, Du Pont Co., U.S.A.) under the following conditions. Eluent: 2-propalon:n-hexane = 1:9 Column temperature: 25°C Elution rate: 1.5 ml/minute Detection: Use of Photodiode array detector (MCPD 3500, Otsuka Electric Co.) After elution, the peak fractions having a retention time of about 15.4 minutes and the same UV absorption pattern as those of the vitamin D compounds were collected, concentrated at 40°C or below under reduced pressure and applied to a high performance liquid chromatography (Zorobax ODS, column size 4.6 mm  x 25 cm, Du Pont Co., U.S.A.) under the following conditions. Eluent: water:methanol = 1:9 Column temperature: 40°C Elution rate: 1.0 ml/minute Detection: Use of Photodiode array detector (MCPD 3500, Otsuka Electric Co.) After Elution, the peak fractions having a retention time of about 5.6 minutes and the same UV absorption pattern as those of the vitamin D compounds were collected, and concentrated to dryness at 40°C or below under reduced pressure with a nitrogen gas replacement to give 200 µg of 1α, 25-dihydroxyvitamin D₃, which was identical to the authentic sample of the commercially available 1 , 25-dihydroxyvitamin D₃ (Duphar Co., Netherland) in terms of the retention time of a high performance liquid chromatography (Zorbax SIL, column size 4.6 mm  x 25 cm), the UV absorption spectrum, mass spectrum cleavage pattern. Maximum UV Absorption λ max = 265 nm (ethanol) EI-MS (m/z) 416(M⁺), 398(M⁺-H₂O), 380(M⁺-2H₂O), 287, 269, 258, 251, 152, 134, 129, 116, 111, 59 Example 2 Following the procedure similar to that of Example 1, 1α, 24, 25-trihydroxyvitamin D₃ was obtained from 24, 25-dihydroxyvitamin D₃. This compound indicated the retention time of 29.4 minutes in the high performance liquid chromatography (Zorbax SIL, column size 4.6 mm  x 25 cm) under the same conditions as those of Example 1. Maximum UV Absorption λ max = 265 nm (ethanol) EI-MS (m/z) 432(M⁺), 414(M⁺-H₂O), 396(M⁺-2H₂O), 287, 269, 251, 152, 134, 116, 59 Example 3 Following the procedure similar to that of Example 1, 1α, 25-dihydroxyvitamin D₂ was obtained from 25-hydroxyvitamin D₂. This compound indicated the retention time of 14.4 minutes in the high performance liquid chromatography (Zorbax SIL, column size 4.6 mm  x 25 cm) under the same conditions as those of Example 1. Maximum UV Absorption λ max = 265 nm (ethanol) EI-MS (m/z) 428(M⁺), 410(M⁺-H₂O), 392(M⁺-2H₂O), 287, 269, 251, 152, 134, 116, 59 Example 4 Following the procedure similar to that of Example 1, 1α, 25-dihydroxy-24, 24-difluoro-26,27-dimethylvitamin D₃ was obtained from 24, 24-difluoro-25-hydroxy-26,27-dimethylvitamin D₃. Maximum UV Absorption λ max = 265 nm (ethanol) EI-MS (m/z) 480(M⁺), 287, 269, 251, 152, 134, 116 Example 5 Following the procedure similar to that of Example 1, 1α, 25-dihydroxy-26, 26, 26, 27, 27, 27-hexafluorovitamin D₃ was obtained from 25-hydroxy-26, 26, 26, 27, 27, 27-hexafluorovitamin D₃. Maximum UV Absorption λ max = 265 nm (ethanol) EI-MS (m/z) 524(M⁺), 287, 269, 251, 152, 134, 116 Example 6 Fifty ml of a sterile liquid medium (pH 7.0) containing 1.5% of glucose, 1.5% of soybean meal, 0.5% of corn steep liquor, 0.5% of sodium chloride and 0.2% of calcium carbonate, in each of five 500 ml Erlenmeyer flasks, was inoculated with one platinum loop of Streptomyces roseosporus A-5797 and shaking culture was carried out at 30°C for 48 hours with stirring. After completion of the cultivation, the culture medium was centrifuged to collect the mycelium, which was then suspended in 200 ml of a buffer solution (pH 7.4) containing 15 mM tris-acetate, 25 mM sodium succinate and 2 mM magnesium acetate (hereinafter referred to as "Buffer solution B") to obtain a mycelial suspension of Streptomyces roseosporus A-5797. This suspension was again centrifuged to collect the mycelium, which was then suspended in 200 ml of Buffer solution B with thorough stirring. Forty ml of the suspension was placed in each of five 500 ml Erlenmeyer flasks and kept warm to 30°C for 5 minutes. A solution of 200 µg of the substrate 25-hydroxyvitamin D₃ in 100 µl of ethanol was added to each of the five Erlenmeyer flasks, and the reaction was carried out at 30°C for 90 minutes with shaking. The reaction mixture were combined, and extracted with 1 ℓ of methylene chloride. The methylene chloride layer was concentrated to dryness at 40°C or below under reduced pressure, immediately dissolved in 7.5 ml of a mixture of 2-propanol and n-hexane (1:9) and allowed to stand at -20°C for 3 hours. The solution was centrifuged to remove the insoluble fractions, and the resulting supernatant was concentrated at 40°C or below under reduced pressure and applied to a high performance liquid chromatography (Zorbax SIL, column size 4.6 mm  x 25 cm, Du Pont Co., U.S.A.) under the following conditions. Eluent: 2-propanol:n-hexane = 1:9 Column Temperature: 25°C Elution rate: 1.5 ml/minute Detection: Use of Photodiode array detector (MCPD 3500, Otsuka Electric Co.) After elution, the peak fractions having a retention time of about 15.4 minutes and the same UV absorption pattern as those of the vitamin D compounds were collected, concentrated at 40°C or below under reduced pressure, and applied to a high performance liquid chromatography (Zorbax ODS, column size 4.6 mm  x 25 cm, Du Pont Co., U.S.A.) under the following conditions. Eluent: water:methanol = 1:9 Column temperature: 40°C Elution rate: 1.0 ml/minute Detection: Use of Photodiode array detector (MCPD 3500, Otsuka Electric Co.) After elution, the peak fractions having a retention time of about 5.6 minutes and the same UV absorption pattern as those of the vitamin D compounds were collected and concentrated to dryness at 40°C or below under reduced pressure with a nitrogen gas replacement to give 200 µg of 1α, 25-dihydroxyvitamin D₃, which was identical to the authentic sample of the commercially available 1α, 25-dihydroxyvitamin D₃ (Duphar Co., Netherland) in terms of the retention time of a high performance liquid chromatography (Zorbax SIL, column size 4.6 mm  x 25 cm), the UV absorption spectrum, mass spectrum cleavage pattern. Maximum UV Absorption λ max = 265 nm (ethanol) EI-MS (m/z) 416(M⁺), 398(M⁺-H₂O), 380(M⁺-2H₂O), 287, 269, 258, 251, 152, 134, 129, 116, 111, 59 Example 7 Fifty ml of a sterile liquid medium (pH 7.0) containing 1.5% of glucose, 1.5% of soybean meal, 0.5% of corn steep liquor, 0.5% of sodium chloride and 0.2% of calcium carbonate, in each of five 500 ml Erlenmeyer flasks, was inoculated with one platinum loop of Nocardia autotrophica N-102, and shaking culture was carried out at 30°C for 48 hours with stirring. After completion of the cultivation, the culture medium was centrifuged to collect the mycelium, which was then suspended in 200 ml of Buffer solution B to obtain mycelial suspension of Nocardia autotrophica N-102. This suspension was again centrifuged to collect the mycelium, which was then suspended in 200 ml of Buffer solution B with thorough stirring. Forty ml of the suspension was placed in each of five 500 ml Erlenmeyer flasks and kept warm to 30°C for 5 minutes. A solution of 200 µg of the substrate 25-hydroxyvitamin D₃ in 100 µl of ethanol was added to each of the five Erlenmeyer flasks, and the reaction was carried out at 30°C for 45 minutes with shaking. The reaction mixture of the Erlenmeyer flasks were combined, and extracted with 1 ℓ of methylene chloride. The methylene chloride layer was concentrated to dryness at 40°C or below under reduced pressure, immediately dissolved in 7.5 ml of a mixture of 2-propanol and n-hexane (1:9) and allowed to stand at -20°C for 3 hours. The solution was centrifuged to remove the insoluble fractions, and the resulting supernatant was concentrated at 40°C or below under reduced pressure and applied to a high performance liquid chromatography (Zorbax SIL, column size 4.6 mm  x 25 cm, Du Pont Co., U.S.A.) under the following conditions. Eluent: 2-propanol:n-hexane = 1:9 Column temperature: 25°C Elution rate: 1.5 ml/minute Detection: Use of Photodiode array detector (MCPD 3500, Otsuka Electric Co.) After elution, the peak fractions having a retention time of about 15.4 minutes and the same UV absorption pattern as those of the vitamin D compounds were collected, concentrated at 40°C or below under reduced pressure and applied to a high performance liquid chromatography (Zorbax ODS, column size 4.6 mm  x 25 cm, Du Pont Co., U.S.A.) under the following conditions. Eluent: water:methanol = 1:9 Column temperature: 40°C Elution rate: 1.0 ml/minute Detection: Use of Photodiode array detector (MCPD 3500, Otsuka Electric Co.) After elution, the peak fractions having a retention time of about 5.6 minutes and the same UV absorption pattern as those of the vitamin D compounds were collected and concentrated to dryness at 40°C or below under reduced pressure with a nitrogen gas replacement to give 100 µg of 1α, 25-dihyroxyvitamin D₃, which was identical to the authentic sample of the commercially available 1α, 25-dihydroxyvitamin D₃ (Duphar Co., Netherland) in terms of the retention time of a high performance liquid chromatography (Zorbax SIL, column size 4.6 mm  x 25 cm), the UV absorption spectrum, mass spectrum cleavage pattern. Maximum UV Absorption λ max = 265 nm (ethanol) EI-MS (m/z) 416(M⁺), 398(M⁺-H₂O), 380(M⁺-2H₂O), 287, 269, 258, 251, 152, 134, 129, 116, 111, 59 Example 8 Fifty ml of a sterile liquid medium (pH 7.0) containing 1% of starch, 1% of maltose, 1% of dextrin, 1.5% of soybean meal, 0.3% of meat extract, 0.5% of casamino acid and 0.4% of calcium carbonate, in each of five 500 ml Erlenmeyer flasks, was inoculated with one platinum loop of Streptomyces sclerotialus T-JS1, and shaking culture was carried out at 30°C for 48 hours with stirring. After completion of the cultivation, the culture medium was centrifuged to collect the mycelium, which was then suspended in 200 ml of Buffer solution A. This mycelial suspension was again centrifuged to collect the mycelium, which was then suspended in 200 ml of Buffer solution A with thorough stirring. Forty ml of the suspension was placed in each of five 500 ml Erlenmeyer flasks and kept warm to 30°C for 5 minutes. A solution of 200 g of the substrate 1α-hydroxyvitamin D₃ in 100 µl of ethanol was added to each of the five Erlenmeyer flasks, and the reaction was carried out at 30°C for 90 minutes with stirring. The reaction mixture were combined, and extracted with 1 ℓ of methylene chloride. The methylene chloride layer was concentrated to dryness at 40°C or below under reduced pressure, immediately dissolved in 7.5 ml of a mixture of 2-propanol and n-hexane (1:9) and allowed to stand at -20°C for 3 hours. The solution was centrifuged to remove the insoluble fractions, and the resulting supernatant was concentrated at 40°C or below under reduced pressure and applied to a high performance liquid chromatography (Zorbax SIL, column size 4.6 mm  x 25 cm, Du Pont Co., U.S.A.) under the following conditions. Eluent: 2-propanol:n-hexane = 1:9 Column temperature: 25°C Elution rate: 1.5 ml/minute Detection: Use of Photodiode array detector (MCPD 3500, Otsuka Electric Co.) After elution, the peak fractions having a retention time of about 15.4 minutes and the same UV absorption pattern as those of the vitamin D compounds were collected, concentrated at 40°C or below under reduced pressure and applied to a high performance liquid chromatography (Zorbax ODS, column size 4.6 mm  x 25 cm, Du Pont Co., U.S.A.) under the following conditions. Eluent: water:methanol = 1:9 Column temperature: 40°C Elution rate: 1.0 ml/minute Detection: Use of Photodiode array detector (MCPD 3500, Otsuka Electric Co.) After elution, the peak fractions having a retention time of about 5.6 minutes and the same UV absorption pattern as those of the vitamin D compounds were collected and concentrated to dryness at 40°C or below under reduced pressure with a nitrogen gas replacement to give 20 µg of 1α, 25-dihydroxyvitamin D₃, which was identical to the authentic sample of the commercially available 1α, 25-dihydroxyvitamin D₃ (Duphar Co., Netherland) in terms of the retention time of a high performance liquid chromatography (Zorbax SIL, column size 4.6 mm  x 25 cm), the UV absorption spectrum, mass spectrum cleavage pattern. Maximum UV Absorption λ max = 265 nm (ethanol) EI-MS (m/z) 416 (M⁺), 398(M⁺-H₂O), 380(M⁺-2H₂O), 287, 269, 251, 152, 134, 129, 116, 111, 59 Example 9 Fifty ml of a sterile liquid medium (pH 7.0) containing 1.5% of glucose, 1.5% of soybean meal, 0.5% of corn steep liquor, 0.5% of sodium chloride and 0.2% of calcium carbonate, in each of five 500 ml Erlenmeyer flasks, was inoculated with one platinum loop of Streptomyces roseosporus A-5797, and shaking culture was carried out at 30°C for 48 hours with stirring. After completion of the cultivation, the culture medium was centrifuged to collect the mycelium, which was then suspended in 200 ml of Buffer solution B to obtain a mycelial suspension of Streptomyces roseosporus A-5797. This mycelial suspension was again centrifuged to collect the mycelium, which was then suspended in 200 ml of Buffer solution B with thorough stirring. Forty ml of the suspension was placed in each of five 500 ml of Erlenmeyer flasks and kept warm to 30°C for 5 minutes. A solution of 200 µg of the substrate 1α-hydroxyvitamin D₃ in 100 µl of ethanol was added to each of the five Erlenmeyer flasks, and the reaction was carried out at 30°C for 180 minutes with shaking. The reaction mixture of the Erlenmeyer flasks were combined, and extracted with 1 ℓ of methylene chloride. The methylene chloride layer was concentrated to dryness at 40°C or below under reduced pressure, immediately dissolved in 7.5 ml of a mixture of 2-propanol and n-hexane (1:9) and allowed to stand at -20°C for 3 hours. The solution was centrifuged to remove the insoluble fractions, and the resulting supernatant was concentrated at 40°C or below under reduced pressure and applied to a high performance liquid chromatography (Zorbax SIL, column size 4.6 mm  x 25 cm, Du Pont Co., U.S.A.) under the following conditions. Eluent: 2-propanol:n-hexane = 1:9 Column temperature: 25°C Elution rate: 1.5 ml/minute Detection: Use of Photodiode array detector (MCPD 3500, Otsuka Electric Co.) After elution, the peak fractions having a retention time of about 15.4 minutes and the same UV absorption pattern as those of the vitamin D compounds were collected, concentrated at 40°C or below under reduced pressure and applied to a high performance liquid chromatography (Zorbax ODS, column size 4.6 mm  x 25 cm, Du Pont Co., U.S.A.) under the following conditions. Eluent: water:methanol = 1:9 Column temperature: 40°C Elution rate: 1.0 ml/minute Detection: Use of Photodiode array detector (MCPD 3500, Otsuka Electric Co.) After elution, the peak fractions having a retention time of about 5.6 minutes and the same UV absorption pattern as those of the vitamin D compounds were collected and concentrated to dryness at 40°C or below under reduced pressure with a nitrogen gas replacement to give 50 g of 1α, 25-dihydroxyvitamin D₃, which was identical to the authentic sample of the commercially available 1α, 25-dihydroxyvitamin D₃ (Duphar Co., Netherland) in terms of the retention time of a high performance liquid chromatography (Zorbax SIL, column size 4.6 mm  x 25 cm), the UV absorption spectrum, mass spectrum cleavage pattern. Maximum UV Absorption λ max = 265 nm (ethanol) EI-MS (m/z) 416(M⁺), 398(M⁺-H₂O), 380(M⁺-2H₂O), 287, 269, 251, 152, 134, 129, 116, 111, 59 Example 10 Fifty ml of a sterile liquid medium (pH 7.0) containing 1.5% of glucose, 1.5% of soybean meal, 0.5% of corn steep liquor, 0.5% of sodium chloride and 0.2% of calcium carbonate, in each of five 500 ml Erlenmeyer flasks, was inoculated with one platinum loop of Nocardia autotrophica N-102, and shaking culture was carried out at 30°C for 48 hours with stirring. After completion of the cultivation, the culture medium was centrifuged to collect the mycelium, which was then suspended in 200 ml of Buffer solution B to obtain a mycelial suspension of Nocardia autotrophica N-102. This mycelial suspension was again centrifuged to collect the mycelium, which was then suspended in 200 ml of Buffer solution B with thorough stirring. Forty ml of the suspension was placed in each of five 500 ml Erlenmeyer flasks and kept warm to 30°C for 5 minutes. A solution of 200 µg of the substrate 1α-hydroxyvitamin D₃ in 100 µl of ethanol was added to each of the five Erlenmeyer flasks, and the reaction was carried out at 30°C for 90 minutes with stirring. The reaction mixture of the Erlenmeyer flasks were combined, and extracted with 1 ℓ of methylene chloride. The methylene chloride layer was concentrated to dryness at 40°C or below under reduced pressure, immediately dissolved in 7.5 ml of a mixture of 2-propanol and n-hexane (1:9) and allowed to stand at -20°C for 3 hours. The solution was centrifuged to remove the insoluble fractions, and the resulting supernatant was concentrated at 40°C or below under reduced pressure and applied to a high performance liquid chromatography (Zorbax SIL, column size 4.6 mm  x 25 cm, Du Pont Co., U.S.A.) under the following conditions. Eluent: 2-propanol:n-hexane = 1:9 Column temperature: 25°C Elution rate: 1.5 ml/minute Detection: Use of Photodiode array detector (MCPD 3500, Otsuka Electric Co.) After elution, the peak fractions having a retention time of about 15.4 minutes and the same UV absorption pattern as those of the vitamin D compounds were collected, concentrated at 40°C or below under reduced pressure and applied to a high performance liquid chromatography (Zorbax ODS, column size 4.6 mm  x 25 cm, Du Pont Co., U.S.A.) under the following conditions. Eluent: water:methanol = 1:9 Column temperature: 40°C Elution rate: 1.0 ml/minute Detection: Use of Photodiode array detector (MCPD 3500, Otsuka Electric Co.) After elution, the peak fractions having a retention time of about 5.6 minutes and the same UV absorption pattern as those of the vitamin D compounds were collected and concentrated to dryness at 40°C or below under reduced pressure with a nitrogen gas replacement to give 350µg of 1α, 25-dihydroxyvitamin D₃, which was identical to the authentic sample of the commercially available 1α, 25-dihydroxyvitamin D₃ (Duphar Co., Netherland) in terms of the retention time of a high performance liquid chromatography (Zorbax SIL, column size 4.6 mm  x 25 cm), the UV absorption spectrum, mass spectrum cleavage pattern. Maximum UV Absorption λ max = 265 nm (ethanol) EI-MS (m/z) 416(M⁺), 398(M⁺-H₂O), 380(M⁺-2H₂O), 287, 269, 251, 152, 134, 129, 116, 111, 59 Example 11 Following the procedure similar to that of Example 8, 1α, 24, 25-trihydroxyvitamin D₃ was obtained from 1α, 24-dihydroxyvitamin D₃. This compound indicated the retention time of 29.4 minutes in the high performance liquid chromatography under the same conditions as those of Example 1. Maximum UV Absorption λ max = 265 nm (ethanol) EI-MS (m/z) 432(M⁺), 414(M⁺-H₂O), 396(M⁺-2H₂O), 287, 269, 251, 152, 134, 116, 59 Example 12 Fifty ml of a sterile liquid medium (pH 7.0) containing 1.5% of glucose, 1.5% of soybean meal, 0.5% of corn steep liquor, 0.5% of sodium chloride and 0.2% of calcium carbonate, in a 500 ml Erlenmeyer flasks, was inoculated with one platinum loop of Nocardia autotrophica N-102, and shaking culture was carried out at 30°C for 48 hours. To the culture medium of Nocardia autotrophica N-102 in logarithmic growth phase were added a solution of 5 mg of the substrate vitamin D₃ in 250 µl of ethanol and 0.5 ml of Tween-80, and then the mixture was subjected to shaking culture at 30°C for 48 hours. After completion of the reaction, the culture medium was extracted with 200 ml of methylene chloride. The methylene chloride layer was concentrated to dryness at 40°C or below under reduced pressure, immediately dissolved in 3 ml of a mixture of 2-propanol and n-hexane (1:9) and allowed to stand at -20°C for 3 hours. The solution was centrifuged to remove the insoluble fractions, and the resulting supernatant was concentrated at 40°C or below under reduced pressure and applied to a high performance liquid chromatography (Zorbax SIL, column size 4.5 mm  x 25 cm, Du Pont Co., U.S.A.) under the following conditions. Eluent: 2-propanol:n-hexane = 3:22 Column temperature: 25°C Elution rate: 1.5 ml/minute Detection: Use of Photodiode array detector (Waters M990, Japan Millipore Co.) After elution, the peak fractions having a retention time of about 4.0 minutes and the same UV absorption pattern as those of the vitamin D compounds were collected, concentrated at 40°C or below under reduced pressure and applied to a high performance liquid chromatography (Zorbax ODS, column size 4.6 mm  x 25 cm, Du Pont Co. U.S.A.) under the following conditions. Eluent: water:methanol = 1:9 Column temperature: 40°C Elution rate: 1.0 ml/minute Detection: Use of Photodiode array detector (Waters M990, Japan Millipore Co.) After elution, the peak fractions having a retention time of about 8.0 minutes and the same UV absorption pattern as those of the vitamin D compounds were collected and concentrated to dryness at 40°C or below under reduced pressure with a nitrogen gas replacement to give 500 µg of 25-hydroxyvitamin D₃, which was identical to the authentic sample of the commercially available 25-hydroxyvitamin D₃ (Duphar Co., Netherland) in terms of the retention time of a high performance liquid chromatography (Zorbax SIL, column size 4.6 mm  x 25 cm), the UV absorption spectrum, mass spectrum cleavage pattern. Maximum UV Absorption λ max = 265 nm (ethanol) EI-MS (m/z) 400(M⁺), 382(M⁺-H₂O), 271, 253, 136, 118, 59 Example 13 Fifty ml of a sterilized liquid medium (pH 7.0) containing 1.5% of glucose, 1.5% of soybean meal, 0.5% of corn steep liquor, 0.5% of sodium chloride and 0.2% of calcium carbonate and 0.05% of magnesium sulfate in a 500 ml Erlenmeyer flasks, was inoculated with one platinum loop of Nocardia autotrophica N-102, and shaking culture was carried out at 30°C for 48 hours with stirring. To the culture medium of Nocardia autotrophica N-102 in logarithmic growth phase were added a solution of 5 mg of the substrate vitamin D₃ in 250 µl of ethanol and 0.05 ml of Tween-80, and then the mixture was subjected to shaking culture at 30°C for 60 hours with stirring. After completion of the reaction, the culture medium was extracted with 200 ml of methylene chloride. The methylene chloride layer was concentrated to dryness at 40°C or below under reduced pressure, immediately dissolved in 3 ml of a mixture of 2-propanol and n-hexane (1:9) and allowed to stand at -20°C for 3 hours. The solution was centrifuged to remove the insoluble fractions, and the resulting supernatant was concentrated at 40°C or below under reduced pressure and applied to a high performance liquid chromatography (Zorbax SIL, column size 4.6 mm  x 25 cm, Du Pont Co., U.S.A.) under the following conditions. Eluent: 2-propanol:n-hexane = 3.22 Column temperature: 25°C Elution rate: 1.5 ml/minute Detection: Use of Photodiode array detector (Waters M990, Japan Millipore Co.) After elution, the peak fractions having a retention time of about 14.5 minutes and the same UV absorption pattern as those of the vitamin D compounds were collected, concentrated at 40°C or below under reduced pressure and applied to a high performance liquid chromatography (Zorbax ODS, column size 4.6 mm  x 25 cm, Du Pont Co., U.S.A.) under the following conditions. Eluent: water:methanol = 1:9 Column temperature: 40°C Elution rate: 1.0 ml/minute Detection: Use of Photodiode array detector (Waters M990, Japan Millipore Co.) After elution, the peak fractions having a retention time of about 5.6 minutes and the same UV absorption pattern as those of the vitamin D compounds were collected and concentrated to dryness at 40°C or below under reduced pressure with a nitrogen gas replacement to give 50 µg of 1α, 25-dihydroxyvitamin D₃, which was identical to the authentic sample of the commercially available 1α, 25-dihydroxyvitamin D₃ (Duphar Co., Netherland) in terms of the retention time of a high performance liquid chromatography (Zorbax SIL, column size 4.6 mm  x 25 cm), the UV absorption spectrum, mass spectrum cleavage pattern. Maximum UV Absorption λ max = 265 nm (ethanol) EI-MS (m/z) 416(M⁺), 398(M⁺-H₂O), 380(M⁺-2H₂O), 287, 269, 251, 152, 134, 129, 116, 111, 59 Example 14 Following the procedure similar to that of Example 12, 25-hydroxyvitamin D₂ was obtained from vitamin D₂. This compound indicated the retention time of 3.9 minutes in the high performance liquid chromatography (Zorbax SIL, column size 4.6 mm  x 25 cm) under the same conditions as those of Example 12. Maximum UV Absorption λ max = 265 nm (ethanol) EI-MS (m/z) 412(M⁺), 394(M⁺-H₂O), 271, 253, 136, 118, 59 Example 15 Following the procedure similar to that of Example 13, 1α, 25-dihydroxyvitamin D₂ was obtained from vitamin D₂. This compound indicated the retention time of 13.8 minutes in the high performance liquid chromatography (Zorbax SIL, column size 4.6 mm  x 25 cm) under the same conditions as those of Example 13. Maximum UV Absorption λ max = 265 nm (ethanol) EI-MS (m/z) 428(M⁺), 410(M⁺-H₂O), 392(M⁺-2H₂O), 287, 269, 251, 152, 134, 116, 59 Example 16 (1) Fifty ml of a sterilized liquid medium (pH 7.0) containing 1.5% of glucose, 1.5% of soybean meal, 0.5% of corn steep liquor, 0.5% of sodium chloride and 0.2% of calcium carbonate in a 500 ml Erlenmeyer flask was inoculated with one platinum loop of Nocardia autotrophica N-102, and shaking culture was carried out at 28°C for 96 hours with stirring. (2) The following procedure was carried out at 2 to 8°C. The mycelium obtained in item (1) was suspended in 200 ml of a buffer solution (pH 7.4) containing 10 mM tris-acetate, 2 mM magnesium acetate, 7 mM 2-mercaptoethanol and 20% of glycerol (hereinafter referred to as "Buffer solution C"). The resulting mycelial suspension was centrifuged to give the mycelium, which was again suspended in 100 ml of Buffer solution C. This suspension was treated with a dispersor (ULTRA-TURRAX ®: trade name, IKA-WERK CO.) for 2 minutes, and there was obtained the sonicated mycelium, which was then centrifuged to give a supernatant. Polyethylene glycol 6000 was added dropwise to the resulting supernatant to the final concentration of 25% with stirring, and the resulting solution was allowed to stand at 4°C for 30 minutes. Then, the solution was centrifuged for removing the supernatant, and there was obtained the crude enzyme precipitate. (3) The crude enzyme precipitate obtained in item (2) was added in an amount corresponding to 500 mg of protein to a solution (pH 7.4) containing 20 mM tris-acetic acid, 70 mM nicotinamide, 2 mM magnesium acetate, 100 mM NADP, 5 mM ATP and 6 mM glucose-phosphoric acid. To 15 ml of the resulting enzyme reaction solution were added 5 units of glucose-phosphate dehydrogenase and a solution of 3 mg of vitamin D₃ in 150 µℓ of ethanol, and the mixture was shaken at 28°C for 30 minutes for enzyme reaction. (4) To the enzyme reaction solution obtained in item (3) was added 45 ml of a mixture of chloroform and methanol (1:2) so as to stop the enzyme reaction, and then the reaction product was extracted according to the method of Bligh and Deyer. After extraction, the resulting chloroform layer was concentrated to dryness at 40°C or below under reduced pressure, immediately dissolved in 250 ml of 2-propanol and n-hexane (1:9), and the solution was applied to a high performance liquid chromatography (Zorbax SIL, column size 4.6 mm  x 25 cm, Du Pont Co., U.S.A.) under the following conditions. Eluent: 2-propanol:n-hexane = 3:22 Column temperature: 25°C Elution rate: 1.5 ml/minute Detection: Use of Photodiode array detector (MCPD 3500, Otsuka Electric Co.) (5) After elution by the high performance liquid chromatography in item (4), the peak fractions having a retention time of about 4.0 minutes and the same UV absorption pattern as those of the vitamin D compounds were collected, concentrated at 40°C or below under reduced pressure and applied to a high performance liquid chromatography (Zorbax ODS, column size 4.6 mm  x 25 cm, Du Pont Co., U.S.A.) under the following conditions. Eluent: water:methanol = 1:9 Column temperature: 40°C Elution rate: 1.0 ml/minute Detection: Use of Photodiode array detector (MCPD 3500, Otsuka Electric Co.) After elution, the peak fractions having a retention time of about 8.0 minutes and the same UV absorption pattern as those of the vitamin D compounds were collected and concentrated to dryness at 40°C or below under reduced pressure with a nitrogen gas replacement to give 116 µg of 25-hydroxyvitamin D₃, which was identical to the authentic sample of the commercially available 25-hydroxyvitamin D₃ (Duphar Co., Netherland) in terms of the retention time of a high performance liquid chromatography (Zorbax SIL, column size 4.6 mm  x 25 cm), the UV absorption spectrum, mass spectrum cleavage pattern. Maximum UV Absorption λ max = 265 nm (ethanol) EI-MS (m/z) 400(M⁺), 382(M⁺-H₂O), 271, 253, 136, 118, 59 (6) After elution of the high performance liquid chromatography in item (4), the peak fractions having a retention time of about 14.5 minutes and the same UV absorption pattern as those of the vitamin D compounds were collected, concentrated at 40°C or below under reduced pressure and applied to a high performance liquid chromatography (Zorbax ODS, column size 4.6 mm  x 25 cm, Du Pont Co., U.S.A.) under the following conditions. Eluent: water:methanol = 1:9 Column temperature: 40°C Elution rate: 1.0 ml/minute Detection: Use of Photodiode array detector (MCPD 3500, Otsuka Electric Co.) After elution, the peak fractions having a retention time of about 5.6 minutes and the same UV absorption pattern as those of the vitamin D compounds were collected and concentrated to dryness at 40°C or below under reduced pressure with a nitrogen gas replacement to give 20 µg of 1α, 25-dihydroxyvitamin D₃, which was identical to the authentic sample of the commercially available 1α, 25-dihydroxyvitamin D₃ (Duphar Co., Netherland) in terms of the retention time of a high performance liquid chromatography (Zorbax SIL, column size 4.6 mm  x 25 cm), the UV absorption spectrum, mass spectrum cleavage pattern. Maximum UV Absorption λ max = 265 nm (ethanol) EI-MS (m/z) 416(M⁺), 398(M⁺-H₂O), 380(M⁺-2H₂O), 287, 269, 251, 152, 134, 129, 116, 111, 59 Experiment In vitro radioreceptor assay method of 1α, 25-dihydroxyvitamin D₃ 1α, 25-Dihydroxyvitamin D₃ receptor prepared from fetal chicken intestine (Yamasa Shoyu Co.) was suspended in a buffer solution (pH 7.4) containing 10 mM tris-acetate, 0.5 mM EDTA, 1 mM dithiothreitol and 10 mM sodium molybdate to give a receptor solution (protein: about 0.5 mg/l). To the suspension was added each 3 µl and 10 µl of the test drug [the authentic sample of 1α, 25-dihydroxyvitamin D₃ (Duphar Co., Netherland)] and the 1α, 25-dihydroxyvitamin D₃ compound obtained in Example 1 dissolved in 50% ethanol, respectively, to give 10⁻⁹ - 10⁻⁵ M concentration. ³H-1α, 25-Dihydroxyvitamin D₃ (about 4 µM) was then added, and incubation was carried out at 0°C for 3 hours. Separation of receptor binding substance and no-binding substance was carried out according to the charcoal method. The specific binding amount is calculated by subtracting non-specific binding amount obtained in the presence of 10 µM 1α, 25-dihydroxyvitamin D₃ from the total binding amount obtained in the above reaction. The binding ability of the test drug is expressed as a concentration (IC₅₀) of 50% inhibition of the binding to receptor with 1α, 25-dihydroxyvitamin D₃. Test drug: 1α, 25-dihydroxyvitamin D₃ IC₅₀ (nM) Authentic sample 32 Compound obtained in Example 1 32 Compound obtained in Example 6 32 Compound obtained in Example 7 32 Compound obtained in Example 8 32 Compound obtained in Example 13 32 Compound obtained in Example 16 32 As indicated above, the activities of 1α, 25-dihydroxyvitamin D₃'s obtained in Examples 1, 6, 7, 8, 13 and 16 are identical to those of the commercially available authentic sample in the test of in vitro radioreceptor assay method.

Claims: A method for preparing a 1α- or 25-hydroxyvitamin D compound which comprises adding a vitamin D compound having a hydrogen atom at the 1α- or 25-position to a reaction mixture containing a mycelium of the genus Streptomyces or Nocardia being capable of hydroxylating the vitamin D compound or a reaction mixture containing the enzyme produced from the mycelium and converting the hydrogen atom into a hydroxyl group. A method for preparing a 25-hydroxyvitamin D compound or 1α, 25-dihydroxyvitamin D compound which comprises adding a vitamin D compound having hydrogen atoms at the 1α- and 25-positions to a reaction mixture containing a mycelium of the genus Streptomyces or Nocardia being capable of hydroxylating the vitamin D compound or a reaction mixture containing the enzyme produced from the mycelium and converting the hydrogen atoms into hydroxyl groups. A method according to Claim 1 or 2, wherein the mycelium is of the genus Streptomyces and is Streptomyces sclerotialus T-JS1 (deposited at the Fermentation Research Institute, Agency of Industrial Science and Technology, Japan, Accession No FERM BP-1370). A method according to Claim 1 or 2, wherein the mycelium is of the genus Streptomyces and is Streptomyces roseosporus A-5797 (deposited at the Fermentation Research Institute, Agency of Industrial Science and Technology, Japan, Accession No FERM BP-1574). A method according to Claim 1 or 2, wherein the mycelium is of the genus Nocardia and is Nocardia autotrophica N-102 (deposited at the Fermentation Research Institute, Agency of Industrial Science and Technology, Japan, Accession No FERM BP-1573). A method for preparing a vitamin D derivative which is substituted in at least one of the 25- and 1-alpha-positions by a or a respective hydroxyl group, which method comprises including in an enzymatic reaction medium a vitamin D compound having 25- and 1-alpha-positions at least one of which positions is free from hydroxyl but capable of bearing hydroxyl characterized in that the enzymatic reaction medium contains a mycelium of the genus Streptomyces or Nocardia or the enzyme produced by the said mycelium, which said enzyme is capable of hydroxylating the said vitamin D compound to provide the said vitamin D derivative. A method according to Claim 6, wherein the vitamin D compound has, at the said 25- and 1-alpha-positions, a respective hydrogen atom and the vitamin D derivative produced by the said enzyme has a hydroxyl group at least at the 25-position. A method according to Claim 6, wherein the vitamin D compound has, at the 25-position, a hydroxyl group and the vitamin D derivative produced by the said enzyme has a hydroxyl group additionally at the 1-alpha-position. A method according to Claim 6, wherein the vitamin D compound has, at one of the said 25- and 1-alpha-positions, a substituent other than hydrogen whereby the said one of the said 25- and 1-alpha-positions is incapable of bearing a hydroxyl group and the vitamin D derivative produced by the said enzyme has a hydroxyl group at the other of the said 25- and 1-alpha-positions.

Inventors: MIKAMI, AKIKO, MIZOUE, KAZUTOSHI, OMURA, SADAFUMI, SASAKI, JOJI
Applicants: TAISHO PHARMACEUTICAL CO. LTD
Application year: 1988
Main classification: C12P7
IPC codes: C12P7, C07C401