The level of circula ng 1,25- dihydroxycholecalciferol is significantly reduced in patients with chronic liver disease because

A healthy liver conves vitamin D (cholecalciferol) to form 25-hydroxycholecalciferol, but a diseased liver has a reduced capacity to do so. The kidney, not the liver, is responsible for the conversion of 25 hydroxycholecalciferol to 1,25-dihydroxycholecalciferol. Vitamin D, not 1,25-hydroxycholecalciferol, is absorbed by the small intestine.