diff --git a/uk/ac/sanger/artemis/chado/ChadoTransactionManager.java b/uk/ac/sanger/artemis/chado/ChadoTransactionManager.java
index 928d31c8d0d73c739a8b8e95a904ef59a921266e..3cc769564b98d5c66535efe0878b362b303f9a83 100644
--- a/uk/ac/sanger/artemis/chado/ChadoTransactionManager.java
+++ b/uk/ac/sanger/artemis/chado/ChadoTransactionManager.java
@@ -126,7 +126,7 @@ public class ChadoTransactionManager
   
   //synonym tags from cv
   private static String synonym_tags[] = null;
-  private static String SYNONYM_TAG_CVNAME = "genedb_synonym_type";
+  public static String SYNONYM_TAG_CVNAME = "genedb_synonym_type";
   private EntryGroup entryGroup;
   // Db where db entries  are stored corresponding to controlled curation CV terms
   public static String CONTROLLED_CURATION_DB = "CCGEN";
diff --git a/uk/ac/sanger/artemis/components/genebuilder/gff/GffPanel.java b/uk/ac/sanger/artemis/components/genebuilder/gff/GffPanel.java
index b22b4917430ce5c4dcf6b9b876c1466ef9d186c6..8dcbfe5a5df1b553e04878f4fd41e497bd88e363 100644
--- a/uk/ac/sanger/artemis/components/genebuilder/gff/GffPanel.java
+++ b/uk/ac/sanger/artemis/components/genebuilder/gff/GffPanel.java
@@ -17,7 +17,7 @@
  * along with this program; if not, write to the Free Software
  * Foundation, Inc., 59 Temple Place - Suite 330, Boston, MA  02111-1307, USA.
  *
- * $Header: //tmp/pathsoft/artemis/uk/ac/sanger/artemis/components/genebuilder/gff/GffPanel.java,v 1.14 2008-01-11 15:03:56 tjc Exp $
+ * $Header: //tmp/pathsoft/artemis/uk/ac/sanger/artemis/components/genebuilder/gff/GffPanel.java,v 1.15 2008-02-25 14:15:33 tjc Exp $
  */
 
 package uk.ac.sanger.artemis.components.genebuilder.gff;
@@ -437,7 +437,8 @@ public class GffPanel extends JPanel
   
   private void addSynonym()
   {
-    final Vector synonyms = DatabaseDocument.getCvterms("", "genedb_synonym_type");
+    final Vector synonyms = DatabaseDocument.getCvterms("", 
+        ChadoTransactionManager.SYNONYM_TAG_CVNAME);
     final JExtendedComboBox list = new JExtendedComboBox(synonyms);
     final String options[] = { "CANCEL", "NEXT>"};