COMPARATIVE-STUDY ON XANTHAN GUM AND HYDROXYPROPYLMETHYL CELLULOSE ASMATRICES FOR CONTROLLED-RELEASE DRUG-DELIVERY .1. COMPACTION AND IN-VITRO DRUG-RELEASE BEHAVIOR

A comparative investigation has been undertaken to assess the performa nce of xanthan gum (XG) and hydroxypropylmethyl cellulose (HPMC) as hy drophilic matrix-forming agents in respect of compaction characteristi cs and in vitro drug release behaviour. The overall compaction charact eristics are found to be quite similar to each other and typical of po lymer behaviour. But the flow characteristics are different, i.e., XG is more readily flowable than HPMC. The observed difference in drug re lease profiles between these two potential excipients are explored and explained by the difference in their hydrophilicity and subsequent hy dration properties.