A laboratory material catalogue changes as new reagents arrive, definitions improve and errors are corrected. If researchers cite only the current catalogue, a later reader may see a different material description from the one available when the experiment was planned.
Decide what belongs in a catalogue release
A research catalogue can describe approved material definitions, source records and evidence links. Live stock quantities and container movements may change far more frequently and are usually better represented by linked inventory records.
An original arrangement might use a stable material identifier for an intended construct, a revision for its documented definition and separate identifiers for each purchased lot. A study can then name the definition and the actual lot it used.
Do not force a single identifier to mean all three things. A corrected sequence description, a new supplier and a newly opened container are different events, even if they concern the same familiar peptide name.
Write down what triggers a catalogue release. Examples include a substantive identity correction, an added source option or a changed evidence requirement. The policy should make historical interpretation possible without freezing useful improvements.
Choose a visible version scheme
DataCite’s guidance distinguishes minor updates from major changes for DOI-identified resources. It recommends updated metadata for minor changes and a new linked DOI for major versions, while leaving the major/minor distinction to the resource stewards.DataCite — Versioning (opens in a new tab)
An internal catalogue does not need a DOI for every edit. The relevant lesson is to define version meaning and relationships clearly. A date-based release or an incrementing release number can work if it is consistently maintained.
| Change | Record to preserve |
|---|---|
| Corrected display spelling | Edit date and unchanged scientific meaning |
| Newly documented terminal modification | Previous description, new evidence and affected material record |
| Additional purchasing source | Source-specific identity and comparison limitations |
| Withdrawn material definition | Historical record and reason it is no longer current |
A revision label should never substitute for a change explanation. “Version 4” tells a reader little unless they can discover what changed from version 3 and whether that change affects their study.
Freeze the reference used by each project
At a defined project milestone, record the catalogue release and the material entries relevant to the study. Retain the supporting documents or durable links permitted by the project’s records policy.
Suppose a hypothetical study used material M17 under release 2026-04. A later release adds a more precise structural description. The study record should preserve the original description and separately assess whether the new evidence applies to its actual lot.
Do not rewrite the historical study record to imply that information was known earlier than it was. A dated clarification can connect the old and new interpretations without obscuring their sequence.
Keep earlier releases understandable
Maintain an accessible route from the current catalogue to relevant historical releases and their change notes. Retiring a material should remove it from ordinary selection without erasing the evidence needed to understand earlier work.
For a publicly deposited catalogue with multiple DOI-identified versions, DataCite provides relationships linking earlier and newer versions and relationships connecting an overall resource to its versioned instances. Use the repository’s supported implementation.DataCite — Versioning (opens in a new tab)
Before releasing an update, check whether changed identifiers or field meanings break study links. Where a record has been split into two distinct molecular definitions, preserve an explanation rather than redirecting every old reference to one arbitrarily chosen replacement.
A useful catalogue history lets researchers answer two questions separately: what is the best current description, and what did this particular project rely on? Both matter when evidence changes over time.
Sources and further detail
- DataCite — Versioning (opens in a new tab)
Current official guidance inspected for major/minor updates and relationships between versions. Internal catalogue examples are original and do not require DOI registration.
Sources checked 20 September 2026. Reporting examples are illustrative unless explicitly identified as supplied-document transcriptions. This article has not undergone independent scientific peer review.