Reed Elsevier has acquired the Beilstein Database, a prominent database covering the organic chemistry field. The deal further cements the relationship between Elsevier and the database. Elsevier has played an integral role in the production and marketing of the database since 1998. Nearly 5 million compounds have been added or updated by Elsevier during that time.
The Beilstein Database's records date back to 1771. The overall database contains more than 9.8 million compounds, 10 million reactions and 320 million experimental data on chemical properties. The database also includes more than 900,000 original author abstracts from 1980 to the present.
This acquisition really just finalizes a partnership that has apparently well served both Elsevier and the Beilstein Database's former owner, the Beilstein-Institut, for nearly a decade. Look for Elsevier to bolster the contents and functionality of the database even further as the STM publishing giant utilizes resources it already has in the chemical field. Currently, the company's Crossfire and DiscoverGate interfaces allow customers to link between Scopus (Elsevier's abstract and indexing database) and the chemical reactions and compounds housed in the Beilstein Database. The connection among Elsevier's scientific properties will undoubtedly grow as the publisher continues to respond to a user base now accustomed to tools that are seamlessly integrated into the workflow.