pubmed-mcp-server
Server Configuration
Describes the environment variables required to run the server.
| Name | Required | Description | Default |
|---|---|---|---|
No arguments | |||
Instructions
Guidance the server publishes about itself, which clients place ahead of the tool catalog so the model reads it before choosing anything.
This server publishes no instructions, or was last inspected before Glama recorded them.
Capabilities
Features and capabilities supported by this server
Protocol revision2025-11-25
| Capability | Details |
|---|---|
| tools | {
"listChanged": true
} |
| logging | {} |
| prompts | {
"listChanged": true
} |
| resources | {
"subscribe": true,
"listChanged": true
} |
Tools
Functions exposed to the LLM to take actions
| Name | Description |
|---|---|
| pubmed_search_articlesA | Search PubMed with full query syntax, filters, and date ranges. Returns PMIDs and optional brief summaries. Supports field-specific filters (author, journal, MeSH terms), common filters (language, species, free full text), and pagination via offset for paging through large result sets. |
| pubmed_fetch_articlesA | Fetch full article metadata by PubMed IDs. Returns detailed article information including abstract, authors, journal, MeSH terms, and linked retraction, erratum, and comment notices; grants and the members of a collective author are opt-in ( |
| pubmed_fetch_fulltextA | Fetch full-text articles from PubMed Central as structured sections — the body, then back matter such as acknowledgments, declarations, and appendices — with tables and references. When PMC misses, transparently falls back to Europe PMC |
| pubmed_format_citationsA | Get formatted citations for PubMed articles in one or more formats (apa, mla, bibtex, ris, vancouver). Pass a single format as a string or multiple as an array. Retractions, errata, and expressions of concern NCBI links to an article come back in |
| pubmed_find_relatedA | Find articles related to a source article — similar content (similar), articles citing this one (cited_by), or articles this one cites (references). Uses NCBI ELink as the primary source; falls back to Europe PMC then OpenAlex when NCBI is unavailable. |
| pubmed_spell_checkA | Spell-check a PubMed search query against NCBI ESpell and get the corrected query back. Use after a zero-hit or thin |
| pubmed_lookup_meshA | Search and explore the MeSH (Medical Subject Headings) controlled vocabulary. Returns descriptor records with tree numbers, scope notes, and entry terms, plus pagination via offset for paging past the maxResults cap. |
| pubmed_lookup_citationA | Look up PubMed IDs from partial bibliographic citations. Useful when you have a reference (journal, year, volume, page, author) and need the PMID — deterministic citation matching, more reliable than free-text search for structured references. Each citation must include at least journal or a four-digit year (ECitMatch primary-keys on journal+volume+page; author-only or volume-only inputs guarantee no match); more fields = better match accuracy. |
| pubmed_convert_idsA | Convert between article identifiers (DOI, PMID, PMCID). Accepts up to 50 IDs of a single type per request. Only resolves articles indexed in PubMed Central — for articles not in PMC, use pubmed_search_articles instead. |
| pubmed_europepmc_searchA | Search Europe PMC, a broad open-access biomedical corpus. Surfaces preprints ( |
| pubmed_europepmc_fetchA | Fetch complete Europe PMC records — including the full, untruncated abstract — addressed as |
Prompts
Interactive templates invoked by user choice
| Name | Description |
|---|---|
| research_plan | Generate a structured research plan outline for a biomedical research project. |
Resources
Contextual data attached and managed by the client
| Name | Description |
|---|---|
| database-info | PubMed database metadata including field list, last update date, and record count. |
TDQS
Scored across 11 tools
Most tools have clearly distinct purposes (search vs fetch vs fulltext vs citation formatting vs spell check vs MeSH lookup). Two potential overlap points exist: pubmed_fetch_articles (metadata by PMID) and pubmed_fetch_fulltext (full text by PMC/DOI/PMID) could be confused, as could pubmed_search_articles and pubmed_europepmc_search, though descriptions do clarify the boundaries (metadata vs full text; PubMed vs broader Europe PMC corpus).
All 11 tools follow a strict, predictable prefix naming convention: pubmed_<verb>_<noun> (search_articles, fetch_articles, fetch_fulltext, format_citations, spell_check, lookup_mesh, lookup_citation, convert_ids, find_related) with europepmc variants clearly signposted. The pattern is uniform and readable throughout.
11 tools is a well-scoped count for a literature database server, covering search, retrieval, full text, identifier conversion, citation lookup/formatting, vocabulary lookup, and related-article discovery. Each tool earns its place with a distinct role.
The surface covers a full research lifecycle: querying (PubMed, Europe PMC), retrieving metadata and full text, converting IDs, resolving structured citations, exploring MeSH, spell checking, formatting citations, and finding related articles. Minor gaps include no export/save functionality or batch citation export, but core workflows are well covered.