Open Targets Plugin

Anthropic-packaged Claude Code plugin that wraps the official Open Targets MCP server, the canonical resource for target-disease associations and target-prioritisation scores in drug discovery.

   
Type Claude Code Plugin (wraps a remote MCP server)
Supplier Open Targets consortium (EMBL-EBI, Wellcome Sanger, GSK, Bristol Myers Squibb, …); plugin packaged by Anthropic
Availability GA in the life-sciences marketplace; underlying MCP server tagged “experimental” — release 2026.03.1 (April 7, 2026)
Pricing Free / OSS (Apache-2.0 server; Open Targets data CC0)
Capabilities Read-only
Verified degraded · 2026-07-20 — official endpoint still fails MCP initialize; documented community fallback works
Security caution · 2026-07-20 — working fallback is a NOASSERTION-licensed community wrapper

How to install

  • Claude Code — plugin marketplace: 
    /plugin marketplace add anthropics/life-sciences
/plugin install open-targets@life-sciences
  • Claude Code / Desktop — direct MCP: 
    claude mcp add --transport http open-targets https://mcp.platform.opentargets.org/mcp
  • Claude Code / Desktop — working community alternative (Augmented Nature, OSS) while the official endpoint is down (see Notes): 
    git clone https://github.com/Augmented-Nature/OpenTargets-MCP-Server
cd OpenTargets-MCP-Server
npm install && npm run build
claude mcp add --transport stdio opentargets-server -- node /path/to/OpenTargets-MCP-Server/build/index.js

What it does

  • get_open_targets_graphql_schema — retrieve the live GraphQL schema
  • get_type_dependencies
  • query_open_targets_graphql — execute a GraphQL query
  • batch_query_open_targets_graphql
  • search_entities

Primary use cases: Target prioritisation, drug repurposing via target-disease evidence, mechanism and genetics lookup, building cross-evidence panels for a target shortlist.

Notes

Claude Science: This resource is offered inside Anthropic’s Claude Science via the Clinical Genomics featured connector. Its inclusion there is an independent signal of quality and trustworthiness for life-science research.

Streamable HTTP transport, no auth. The bio-research umbrella plugin references Open Targets indirectly; this is the discrete first-party entry. Tagged experimental — schema may evolve.

Field report (2026-06-15): The remote endpoint https://mcp.platform.opentargets.org/mcp currently fails the MCP initialize handshake, returning JSON-RPC -32602 "Invalid request parameters" under both protocolVersion 2025-06-18 and 2024-11-05. The endpoint is reachable (HTTP 200, content-type: text/event-stream) but non-compliant on initialize, so claude mcp list shows “Failed to connect”, no tools register, and a Claude Code restart does not help (server-side issue). Workarounds that work today: (1) query the Open Targets public GraphQL API directly at https://api.platform.opentargets.org/api/v4/graphql, (2) use ToolUniverse’s OpenTargets_* / disease_target_score tools, or (3) run the community Augmented Nature Open Targets MCP (install path above).

Verified 2026-07-17: the Augmented Nature Open Targets MCP builds cleanly (npm install && npm run build) and passes the initialize handshake (protocolVersion 2024-11-05) over stdio locally — the exact step the official endpoint fails. It registers 6 tools (search_targets, search_diseases, get_target_disease_associations, get_disease_targets_summary, get_target_details, get_disease_details) and returns live data from the public GraphQL API (e.g., search_targets{query:"BRAF"} → ENSG00000157764; get_target_disease_associations{targetId:"ENSG00000157764"} → cardiofaciocutaneous syndrome (0.88), Noonan syndrome, …). Its tool set is smaller and its schema differs from the official server (e.g., associations take targetId/diseaseId, and require at least one).

Sources

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