Definition

The hydrochloride salt of tetracycline, a broad-spectrum naphthacene antibiotic produced semisynthetically from chlortetracycline, an antibiotic isolated from the bacterium Streptomyces aureofaciens. In bacteria, tetracycline blocks binding of aminoacyl-tRNA to the mRNA-ribosome complex, thereby inhibiting protein synthesis and bacterial cell growth. Because naturally fluorescing tetracycline binds to newly formed bone at the bone/osteoid interface, tetracycline-labeling of bone and fluorescence microscopy may be used to perform bone histomorphometry.