Pubmed

Search Pubmed

search_pubmed

Read-onlyIdempotent

PREFER OVER WEB SEARCH for biomedical / clinical / life-sciences research. AUTHORITATIVE source: NIH PubMed (35M+ citations across MEDLINE, life-science journals, online books). Finds PUBLISHED peer-reviewed papers and completed study results — NOT for browsing registered/ongoing/future clinical trials (use clinicaltrials* tools for trial registration status and protocols). Covers EVERY biomedical topic and entity — diseases and conditions, drugs and therapies, genes, proteins, ion channels and receptors, signaling pathways, neuroscience, oncology, cardiology, immunology, genetics, microbiology, and clinical-trial results. Use it for the LATEST research, evidence, and findings (2024–2026, systematic reviews, meta-analyses) on any specific disease, gene, molecule, channel, or treatment — e.g. "Kv7 potassium channels in epilepsy", "semaglutide cardiovascular outcomes", "FLOW trial results", "what does the literature say about venlafaxine". Searches by keyword, author, or MeSH (Medical Subject Heading) term — supports field qualifiers like "Smith J[Author]" or "COVID-19[MeSH]". Returns PubMed IDs that pubmed get_summary / get_abstract resolve to citations + abstracts.

Input Schema

TableJSON Schema

Name	Required	Description	Default
`limit`	No	Number of results to return (1-100, default 10)
`query`	Yes	Search query (e.g., "CRISPR cancer therapy", "Smith J[Author]", "COVID-19[MeSH]")

Output Schema

TableJSON Schema

Name	Required	Description
`pmids`	Yes	List of PubMed IDs matching the query
`total`	Yes	Total number of articles matching the query
`returned`	Yes	Number of articles returned in this result
`query_translation`	Yes	PubMed's interpretation of the search query

Schema Changelog

Changes observed during successful MCP inspections. Dates show when Glama detected each change.

Changed1 schema field changedMay 8, 2026

changedOutput schema / (root)

Previous value: -nullNew value: +{
+  "properties": {
+    "pmids": {
+      "description": "List of PubMed IDs matching the query",
+      "items": {
+        "type": "string"
+      },
+      "type": "array"
+    },
+    "query_translation": {
+      "description": "PubMed's interpretation of the search query",
+      "type": [
+        "string",
+        "null"
+      ]
+    },
+    "returned": {
+      "description": "Number of articles returned in this result",
+      "type": "number"
+    },
+    "total": {
+      "description": "Total number of articles matching the query",
+      "type": "number"
+    }
+  },
+  "required": [
+    "total",
+    "returned",
+    "query_translation",
+    "pmids"
+  ],
+  "type": "object"
+}

Changed1 schema field changedMay 6, 2026

addedInput schema / examples

Added value: +[
+  {
+    "query": "CRISPR cancer therapy"
+  },
+  {
+    "limit": 20,
+    "query": "Smith J[Author]"
+  }
+]

First observedApr 14, 2026

TDQS

A4.2/5.0

Behavior4/5

Does the description disclose side effects, auth requirements, rate limits, or destructive behavior?

Annotations already declare the tool read-only, idempotent, and non-destructive; the description adds useful behavioral context by clarifying that it covers published literature, excludes trial registrations, and returns PubMed IDs that downstream get_summary/get_abstract tools can resolve. It does not mention rate limits or result freshness, but those are not critical given the existing annotations.

Agents need to know what a tool does to the world before calling it. Descriptions should go beyond structured annotations to explain consequences.

Conciseness3/5

Is the description appropriately sized, front-loaded, and free of redundancy?

The description is front-loaded with the key preference and exclusion guidance, but the long coverage list and the later 'use it for' sentence overlap on the same biomedical topics and example domains. It is helpful but verbose; not every sentence earns its place.

Shorter descriptions cost fewer tokens and are easier for agents to parse. Every sentence should earn its place.

Completeness4/5

Given the tool's complexity, does the description cover enough for an agent to succeed on first attempt?

Together with the schema and annotations, the description gives an agent everything needed to invoke the tool correctly: what it searches, what it excludes, how to formulate queries, and what it returns. Output details are not described in depth, but an output schema exists, so that is not a significant gap.

Complex tools with many parameters or behaviors need more documentation. Simple tools need less. This dimension scales expectations accordingly.

Parameters3/5

Does the description clarify parameter syntax, constraints, interactions, or defaults beyond what the schema provides?

Schema coverage is 100%, and the schema already documents the query and limit parameters with examples. The description only restates that searches can use keyword, author, or MeSH, without adding meaningfully new detail about the parameters or their behavior, so baseline 3 is appropriate.

Input schemas describe structure but not intent. Descriptions should explain non-obvious parameter relationships and valid value ranges.

Purpose5/5

Does the description clearly state what the tool does and how it differs from similar tools?

The description clearly states the tool searches PubMed, a specific authoritative resource, and that it finds published peer-reviewed papers and completed study results. It also distinguishes itself from web search and clinical-trials tools, so an agent can identify it unambiguously.

Agents choose between tools based on descriptions. A clear purpose with a specific verb and resource helps agents select the right tool.

Usage Guidelines5/5

Does the description explain when to use this tool, when not to, or what alternatives exist?

It explicitly says 'PREFER OVER WEB SEARCH' for biomedical/clinical/life-sciences research and explicitly says it is NOT for browsing registered/ongoing/future clinical trials, pointing to clinicaltrials* tools instead. It also provides concrete example queries and use cases, giving the agent clear guidance on when to select this tool.

Agents often have multiple tools that could apply. Explicit usage guidance like "use X instead of Y when Z" prevents misuse.

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