Excipient (pharmacologically inactive substance)

What is it?

Dextrates is a purified mixture of saccharides developed from the controlled enzymatic hydrolysis of starch. It is either anhydrous (no water) or hydrated (with water) and contains between 93 and 99% of dextrose equivalent, calculated on the dried basis. It is a micro-crystalline aggregate, and is made of free-flowing, porous, white, odorless, and spherical granules. It may be directly compressed into self-binding tablets; it is used in the preparation of chewable, non-chewable, soluble, dispersible and effervescent tablets. It has a sweet taste and produces a cooling sensation in the mouth. Dextrate is freely soluble in water (1 g in 1 mL), insoluble in ethanol, and soluble in dilute acids and alkalies.^[1]