Biomedical subjects
Publications and source records attributed to Richard E Marsh.
A new survey of the Cambridge Structural Database has uncovered 115 additional crystal structures that were described in the space group P1, but would be better described in groups of higher symmetries.
A recent survey of the Cambridge Structural Database, CSD [Allen (2002). Acta Cryst. B58, 380-388], shows that the percentage of incorrect assignments of the space group Cc has remained at about 10% since the last survey in 1997.
A survey of the October 2001 release of the Cambridge Structural Database [Cambridge Structural Database (1992). Cambridge Crystallographic Data Centre, 12 Union Road, Cambridge, England] has uncovered approximately 675 separate apparently reliable entries under space groups P3, P3(1), P3(2) and R3; in approximately 100 of these entries, the space-group assignment appears to be incorrect. Other features of these space groups are also discussed.
Some 60 examples of crystal structures are presented which can be better described in space groups of higher symmetry than used in the original publications. These are divided into three categories: (A) incorrect Laue group (33 examples), (B) omission of a center of symmetry (22 examples), (C) omission of a center of symmetry coupled with a failure to recognize systematic absences (nine examples). Category A errors do not lead to significant errors in molecular geometry, but these do accompany the two other types of error. There are 19 of the current set of examples which have publication dates of 1996 or later. Critical scrutiny on the part of authors, editors and referees is needed to eliminate such errors in order not to impair the role of crystal structure analysis as the chemical court of last resort.