6.5 Incorrect compound records in online databases 

If the search division finds a compound when searching a database created by abstracting source documents (e.g. patents, journal articles or books) and identifying the chemical compounds disclosed in them but, on reading the source document, cannot find the compound, this does not automatically mean that there has been a mistake and that the compound is not disclosed in the document. For example, compounds which are named but whose structures are not drawn are still part of the disclosure and will be abstracted. In addition, database providers use standard nomenclature in their database records, whereas authors of technical literature frequently do not, and so the database record may use a different nomenclature for the compound from the source document.

However, if the search division really is unable to find the compound in the source document, but the compound is relevant for assessing patentability, it may write to the database provider to ask why the compound was included in the abstract and where it is disclosed in the source. If the database provider has not replied by the time the search report is drafted, the document will be cited in the search report and in the search opinion on the assumption that it does disclose the compound, but the search division will also continue the search as though the compound did not exist.