The Complex Carbohydrate Structure Database (CCSD), an IBM PC- compatible computerized database, and CarbBank, the database management system were created to provide structure and citation information system to meet the needs of persons interested in complex carbohydrates. CCSD and CarbBank, which were initiated by an international body of carbohydrate scientists, have been in development since 1986 and have been commercially available since 1989. We propose to continue developing CarbBank-associated software, to continue building the CCSD, and to make this software available as part of larger database efforts administered by the National Center for Biotechnology Information (NCBI) and by Chemical Abstracts Service (CAS). We intend to create a completely open format for the CCSD and portable, well- documented program modules that will ultimately be available to academic and commercial groups interested in creating computer programs that access CCSD data. The CCSD and CarbBank will also be made compatible with several additional computer environments. The CCSD is expected to grow from its present 3,888 records to over 20,000 records. It is our goal to ensure that CarbBank plays a key role in managing carbohydrate structure information in the global biotechnology arena.
