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Definition of: tetracycline
(tet′rə·sī′klin) noun Chem.
A nitrogenous compound, C22H24N2O8, isolated as a yellow, odorless, crystalline powder from certain species of a soil bacillus (genus Streptomyces). It forms the base of several antibiotics, as Aureomycin and Terramycin. [<tetracyclic, containing four atomic rings + -INE2]
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