Bev,
It sounds as if you are creating lists in Excel and transferring/pasting
the data into Word.  Formatting done in Excel is preserved when moved
into Word.

Microsoft Word has the ability to format data using Auto Correct
In Excel you cannot format text using Auto Correct.
Also, the link you posted has code to be used in Word, not Excel.

In Excel, you would have to have the data entry people, highlight (select)
the latin text and click the Italic button on the Excel toolbar.

It would be possible in Excel, using VBA code, to change specified text
to Italic.  This would have to done after the lists are complete.  
The code would search against a supplied list of terms, find those in the Excel
list and change the font style.
Since you have not used VBA before, creating that code is probably
best left to a paid consultant.

Bev,

You can use the change event to change the formatting of all the desired words after the entry has
been made in the cell.  Create a named range Italicized (your entries currently in sheet1 B1:B???).
Copy the code below, right-click the sheet tab, select "View Code" and paste the code into the
window that appears.  The named range Italicized can be dynamic.

HTH,
Bernie
MS Excel MVP

Private Sub Worksheet_Change(ByVal Target As Range)
Dim myR As Long
If Target.Cells.Count > 1 Then Exit Sub
If Target.Value = "" Then Exit Sub
If Not Intersect(Target, Range("Italicized")) Is Nothing Then Exit Sub

For myR = 1 To Range("Italicized").Cells.Count
  If Range("Italicized").Cells(myR).Value <> "" Then
     If InStr(1, Target.Value, Range("Italicized").Cells(myR).Value) > 0 Then
        Application.EnableEvents = False
        Target.Characters( _
              InStr(1, Target.Value, Range("Italicized").Cells(myR).Value), _
              Len(Range("Italicized").Cells(myR).Value)).Font.FontStyle = "Italic"
        Application.EnableEvents = True
     End If
  End If
Next myR
End Sub

On 28 May, 15:14, "Jim Cone" <james.cone...@comcast.netXXX> wrote:

Hi Jim - sorry I seem to have omitted a rather important bit of info -
the autocorrect of the latin names will actually be used in Word - and
I had thought that the autocorrect text could be formatted? There is a
link where a company has done something similar -
http://www.biologicalrecordscentre.gov.gg/files/italicise.html but as
I said, my VBA is effectively NIL  - the code above has been snaffled
from a website too! This is a request from one of our staff members
and am trying to see if it can be done as the admin teams have to type
up large field reports full of latin names, so they wish to use a
standardised 3-4 code e.g abk and when they press space , for
Ablepharus kitaibelli (in italics) to come out instead.
Regards,
Bev.