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StereochemistryPremium
Fischer projections and D/L template
Premium template. Preview and edit it free in MolDraw; downloading and exporting it is part of MolDraw Pro.
D- and L-glyceraldehyde and L- and D-alanine in Fischer projection, what the cross means in 3D (horizontal = wedge, vertical = hash), and how D/L relates to R/S.
What the template shows
- Horizontal bonds come toward you, vertical bonds go away: glyceraldehyde and alanine
- Reading a Fischer projection
- What the cross means (D-glyceraldehyde)
- horizontal = wedges, vertical = hashes
- Draw the carbon chain vertically with the most oxidised carbon (CHO, COOH) at the top. Each cross is a stereocentre: horizontal groups point toward you, vertical groups away.
- D: the OH (or NH₂) on the lowest stereocentre points right; L: left. D/L compares a molecule with D-glyceraldehyde, not with the sign of rotation.
- D/L and R/S are separate systems: D-glyceraldehyde is (R), L-alanine is (S), but L-cysteine is (R).
- Natural sugars are D; the amino acids in proteins are L.
- Wedge = toward you, hash = away from you · every part of this figure is editable
Drawn with 6 atoms, 56 shapes – every one editable in MolDraw.
Sources
How to use this template
- Press Edit in MolDraw. The template opens on the canvas of the free MolDraw editor.
- Change anything: move structures, edit atoms and labels, recolour highlights or delete what you do not need.
- Add your own structures, arrows and text next to it, or combine several templates on one page.
- Export the drawing as PNG, SVG or PDF for slides, worksheets, theses and papers.
Frequently asked questions
Is the Fischer projections and D/L template free?
You can preview the Fischer projections and D/L template here and open and edit it in MolDraw for free. Downloading or exporting it is part of MolDraw Pro, together with the other premium templates.
Can I edit the Fischer projections and D/L template?
Yes. It opens as an ordinary MolDraw drawing, so every structure, arrow, label and colour can be changed, and you can add your own content around it.
Is the chemistry checked?
Every structure is checked with RDKit and every curly arrow passes MolDraw’s electron-flow audit. The sources used are listed on this page.
Are the R/S labels in the stereochemistry templates checked?
Yes. Every R/S and E/Z descriptor is computed with RDKit from the drawn structure, so the labels match the wedges and dashes.