Before synthetic chemists replicate reactions or create compounds, they must determine whether the materials or precursors they need are already available - or if they must be synthesized. "Data sources on DiscoveryGate are indexed. This allows synthetic chemists to quickly determine whether a chosen synthesis is cost-justified or prohibitive. Access to primary literature and associated Material Safety Data Sheets (MSDS) provides information on determining factors such as yield and safety."

1. Reprint from Molecular Connection Vol 24 No 1 2006
Synthesize or buy?
Unlocking the power of DiscoveryGate®
efore synthetic chemists replicate reactions or create compounds, they must
determine whether the materials or precursors they need are already available—
or if they must be synthesized.
B
For scientists who look for compounds or reactions using the DiscoveryGate® content
service, determining whether products or constituents of a reaction are commercially
available is simple.
“Data sources on DiscoveryGate are indexed,” says Craig Morgan, Product Manager
for MDL® Available Chemicals Directory. “This allows synthetic chemists to quickly
determine whether a chosen synthesis is cost-justified or prohibitive. Access to the primary
literature and associated Material Safety Data Sheets (MSDS) provides information on
determining factors such as yields and safety. Direct links to Available Chemicals
Directory provides comprehensive sourcing information.”
With DiscoveryGate, synthetic chemists can quickly access information on methods,
safety, chemical availability and pricing. “In many cases there is no need to synthesize when
you can buy,” says Morgan. “However, if synthesis is necessary, DiscoveryGate provides
immediate access to the primary literature and associated retrosynthetic schemes.”
The following example shows how the indexed power of DiscoveryGate can speed
decision-making.
Case Study
Protein kinase C (PKC) is a target of great
interest in the development of antitumor
agents because of its crucial role in cellular
signal transduction and tumor promotion.
Derivatives of decursin are novel cancer
chemotherapeutic candidates isolated from
Angelica gigas Nakai. Initial studies showed
that decursin exhibits PKC-activating
activity, suggesting that its cytotoxicity
may be related to the PKC activation.
Step 1. For our study, we want to
synthesize derivatives of decursin with
various R groups in order to study
bioactivity of the derivatives.
Step 2. A search for the heterocyclic
scaffold in MDL synthetic methodology
databases retrieves a reaction of interest
(Figure 2).
Step 3. If an efficient synthetic scheme
can be built on this reaction, it will provide
a route to the target compounds, as the
product of this reaction has key functionality
at the point of R-group variation. Click
on Details to see comprehensive
information concerning this reaction
(Figure 3).
With DiscoveryGate,
synthetic chemists can
quickly access information
on methods, safety, chemical
availability and pricing.
Figure 1: The antitumor agent decursin
Figure 2: Relevant reaction retrieved from ChemInform Reaction Library (FIZ CHEMIE)
Figure 3: Drilling down to further reaction details, expanding the search with “Also found in” links

2. Reprint from Molecular Connection Vol 24 No 1 2006
Step 4. By clicking on ACD in the “Also
found in” links, we find that one of the nec-essary
reactants is available from several
suppliers. By clicking on OHS MSDS, we
find that there is an associated MSDS for the
reaction catalyst, zinc chloride (Figure 4).
Step 5. Next we need to find methods for
preparing the other reactant. Click Return
to Synthetic Methodology Information
and Return to Search Results. From here,
click Synthesize Reactants to display the
retrosynthetic schemes (Figure 5). This
identifies methods for preparing reactants
that are not commercially available.
“The retrosynthetic scheme display enables
chemists to quickly and efficiently determine
the suitability of a synthetic route to target
molecules,” says Terry Wright, Senior
Product Manager for MDL Synthetic
Methodology Products. “Retrosynthetic
schemes also provide a behind-the-scenes
search for potential starting materials from
reaction records.”
Step 6. Click on Details in the retrosynthetic
scheme display to see more detailed
information on the applicable reaction
(Figure 6). On this page, you can see if the
reaction components are commercially
available by selecting Use as Query.
Step 7. You can also examine an original
journal article by clicking on the reference
hyperlink on this page1. This provides
additional experimental details about the
reaction (Figure 7).
The preceding workflow illustrates the
use of DiscoveryGate and its “Also found
in” hyperlinks to quickly determine whether
reactants, catalysts, solvents or products
for a given reaction are commercially
available. If they are not obtainable, retrosyn-thetic
schemes offer an alternative route for
determining if they can be synthesized from
readily available compounds.
For more information on finding the
information you need with DiscoveryGate,
contact your Elsevier MDL Account
Manager or submit a request for information
at www.mdl.com.
Figure 4: Rapid access to sourcing details from several suppliers and useful MSDS data
Figure 5: The value of the retrosynthetic scheme in synthesis planning
Figure 6: Exploring further reaction details for the precursor reactions in the scheme
Figure 7: Article abstract as displayed in Elsevier’s ScienceDirect and full article retrieved from
Tetrahedron Letters (Pergamon)
1 Access to and use of certain third-party content
requires DiscoveryGate subscribers to secure such
rights directly from the content provider.
MDL, Available Chemicals Directory and DiscoveryGate are registered trademarks of MDL Information Systems, Inc. (‘Elsevier MDL’)
in the United States and/or other countries.
©Copyright 2006 Elsevier MDL. All rights reserved.
Elsevier MDL
2440 Camino Ramon,
Suite 300
San Ramon, CA 94583
Tel: +1(925) 543-5400
Fax: +1(925) 543-5401
www.mdl.com