Markush structure searching by information professionals in the chemical industry – Our views and expectations

Markush structures are a special representation of the chemical compounds covered in patent documents. Due to their highly generic nature they are more difficult to index and search than specific chemical structures since they require special indexing and search features to make them searchable. Only a few databases exist that offer such features. The currently available indexing systems have been developed mainly in the 1960s to the 1980s, have not been majorly enhanced since then and their future seems somewhat uncertain. However, due to the fact that such Markush systems index unique information describing the chemistry protected by patent claims they are a necessary and indispensable information source for patent information professionals in the chemical industry in order to be able to support important business processes in chemical companies. Therefore we at BASF see a clear need to keep providing and also to keep developing such systems in the future.