With the continuous development of medical science and technology, the role of pharmaceutical excipients in the preparation process is increasingly prominent. HPMC (Hydroxypropyl methylcellulose) capsules, as a new pharmaceutical excipients, are being used more and more widely in the field of medicine by virtue of their unique advantages. In this paper, the advantages of HPMC capsules will be described from the following aspects.

1. With Advantages in Water Content

The water content of gelatin capsule shell is 12.5% to 17.5%, while the water content of HPMC capsule is only 5% to 7%, and some are less than 3%, which is nearly 60% lower than that of gelatin capsules.

1.1 With Higher Stability in Capsule Shell 
When the water content is less than 10%, the gelatin capsule shell will become brittle, and there is more than 10% risk of brittle breakage. When the moisture is continuously reduced to 5%, there will be 100% brittle; For HPMC capsule shell, even if the water content is less than 1%, it will not break.

Under the condition of high humidity, the gelatin capsule shell will become soft and sticky, resulting in mutual adhesion or adhesion to the package material. HPMC capsules in long-term storage and the exchange of water in the environment, will make the capsule water content in the specified package increased, but will not exceed 9% within 5 years.

1.2 Influence on Filling Drugs
The water content of gelatin capsule shell is higher than that of HPMC capsule shell. When filling easily absorbent drugs, water will migrate to the drug, resulting in the capsule shell becoming brittle and disintegrating slowly, while HPMC capsule shell does not have this situation. Therefore, for moisture-sensitive and water-absorbing contents, HPMC capsules are selected, such as dry powder and Chinese medicine extracts for inhalation.

2. With Natural Concept 
The main component of gelatin capsule shell is protein, which is easy to breed bacteria, so it needs to add preservatives and sterilize with ethylene oxide before packaging. The main component of HPMC capsule shell is hydroxypropyl methylcellulose, which is not easy to grow microorganisms, so no preservatives are added during production, and there is no need to sterilize, which fundamentally solves the problem of chloroethanol residue.

3. With Advantages in Chemical Structure
The main component of gelatin capsules is gelatin (protein), which has cross-linked reactions with amino acids, aldehydes, reducing glycosyl compounds and vitamins. The main component of HPMC capsule shell, HPMC, is a polymer modified by natural polymer cellulose, which is chemically inert and has no interaction with the filling.

4. Security
Plant-derived HPMC capsules will not be infected with animal-derived diseases, nor will the heavy metal Chromium exceed the standard.

Above all is about the introduction to the advantages of HPMC capsules. If theres is any demands on HPMC capsules, maybe you can contact HumanwellCaps.