FRANKFURT, Germany – 2 June 2008 -- Elsevier Information Systems GmbH, a subsidiary of Elsevier, the leading global publisher of scientific, technical and medical information, announced today that from June 2008 CrossFire Beilstein will incorporate multi-step reactions into its database. Multi-step reactions enable users to go beyond fundamental reactions: they will be able to view and understand the individual steps within the overall reaction scheme, as well as find suitable starting points for their synthesis design.
Designed specifically to address user expectations, the addition of multi-step reactions in CrossFire Beilstein supports retro synthesis and enables chemists to find and check better pathways and more effective synthesis routes -- from simple, readily available starting materials to their desired target molecule. In addition, a broader range of synthesis routes is available to generate compound libraries in High Throughput Screening. This finer granularity of the reaction data increases the database's value to synthetic and organic chemists both in industry and academia. CrossFire Beilstein's rich content also serves as the foundation for the next generation of information tools that will further support the selection, design and optimization of synthetic processes
The addition of multi-step reactions to CrossFire Beilstein's content has been met with positive response from both the corporate and academic sectors. "The importance of efficient synthetic routes and straightforward access to relevant reaction data is paramount," says Graeme Robertson, Vice President, Portfolio Management, Siena Biotech S.p.A., Italy, and Chairman of the CrossFire Beilstein Database Advisory Board. He continues that "The enhanced multi-step reactions content will enable chemists to find the best possible routes available and better design the synthesis of target molecules, no longer limited to single step reactions."
About CrossFire Beilstein
The CrossFire Beilstein database (www.info.crossfirebeilstein.com) is the world's largest compilation of chemical facts. As the cornerstone database in organic chemistry, the CrossFire Beilstein database is essential for generating new leads, planning synthetic routes (including starting materials and intermediates), determining bioactivity and physical properties, and ascertaining the environmental fates of compounds. Its experimentally validated, reliable, high-quality data already sets CrossFire Beilstein apart from other compound/reaction and bibliographic databases.
About Elsevier
Elsevier is a world-leading publisher of scientific, technical and medical information products and services. Working in partnership with the global science and health communities, Elsevier's 7,000 employees in over 70 offices worldwide publish more than 2,000 journals and 1,900 new books per year, in addition to offering a suite of innovative electronic products, such as ScienceDirect (http://www.sciencedirect.com/), MD Consult (http://www.mdconsult.com/), Scopus (http://www.info.scopus.com/), bibliographic databases, and online reference works.
Elsevier (http://www.elsevier.com/) is a global business headquartered in Amsterdam, The Netherlands and has offices worldwide. Elsevier is part of Reed Elsevier Group plc (http://www.reedelsevier.com/), a world-leading publisher and information provider. Operating in the science and medical, legal, education and business-to-business sectors, Reed Elsevier provides high-quality and flexible information solutions to users, with increasing emphasis on the Internet as a means of delivery. Reed Elsevier's ticker symbols are REN (Euronext Amsterdam), REL (London Stock Exchange), RUK and ENL (New York Stock Exchange).