Adsorption and orientation of tetracycline on hydroxyapatite.

Adsorption of tetracycline from separate solutions of ethanol, p-dioxane, and chloroform onto synthetic hydroxyapatite (containing about 1.5 monolayer of physisorbed water) was studied in order to understand its interaction with bone and teeth. The adsorption isotherms of tetracycline are reversible and Langmuirian from ethanol and p-dioxane and are almost identical. The isotherm is irreversible from chloroform, and a constant amount of adsorbate is removed from the solutions above a certain concentration. The irreversibly adsorbed compound is completely desorbed by prolonged repeated washing with ethanol. An analysis of the reversible isotherms showed that at maximum coverage the ring or polycyclic structure of the molecule stands perpendicular to the surface with appropriate hydroxyl groups and keto-oxygens hydrogen bonded to the surface. However, the adsorption from chloroform is irreversible and at maximum adsorption is about one and half times larger than that from either ethanol or p-dioxane. The process of adsorption does not affect the chemical integrity of tetracycline.