# chembl.targets.search

Search for biological drug targets (proteins, enzymes, receptors, ion channels) in the ChEMBL database by name, target type, and source organism. Returns target ChEMBL ID, preferred name, target classification (SINGLE PROTEIN, PROTEIN COMPLEX, PROTEIN FAMILY, etc.), organism, UniProt accession numbers, and gene symbols. Use returned target_chembl_id with chembl.activity.bioactivity to retrieve all compounds tested against a target and their potency values. ChEMBL covers 18,500+ targets from 650+ organisms. Source: EMBL-EBI ChEMBL — CC BY-SA 3.0, no auth required.

Agent View of the PolicyLayer registry record for `chembl.targets.search`. HTML page: https://policylayer.com/tools/io-github-whiteknightonhorse-apibase/chembl.targets.search

## Facts

- Tool: `chembl.targets.search`
- Server: Apibase (`apibase-mcp-client`) — https://policylayer.com/tools/io-github-whiteknightonhorse-apibase.md
- Install: `npx -y apibase-mcp-client`
- Homepage: https://github.com/whiteknightonhorse/APIbase
- Risk category: Read (Low risk)
- Registry record: grade F, identity unverified
- Server auth posture: open
- Server rate-limited: no
- Parameters: 4
- Recommended policy verdict: Allowed

## Parameters

| Parameter | Type | Required | Description |
| --- | --- | --- | --- |
| `limit` | integer | no | Number of results to return (1–25, default 10). |
| `query` | string | no | Biological target name to search (case-insensitive substring match). Examples: "Acetylcholinesterase", "Epidermal growth factor receptor", "COX-2". Omit to brow |
| `organism` | string | no | Filter by source organism (case-insensitive substring match). Examples: "Homo sapiens", "Rattus norvegicus", "Escherichia coli". |
| `target_type` | string | no | Filter by target classification. SINGLE PROTEIN is the most common for drug targets. PROTEIN COMPLEX for multi-subunit targets. |

Parameters from the server's own tool schema.

## Example call (MCP tools/call, JSON-RPC 2.0)

```json
{
  "jsonrpc": "2.0",
  "id": 1,
  "method": "tools/call",
  "params": {
    "name": "chembl.targets.search",
    "arguments": {}
  }
}
```

## Why chembl.targets.search is rated Low

Tool retrieves publicly available drug target metadata without modifying data or triggering external operations.

From the tool's own definition: "Search for biological drug targets. Returns target ChEMBL ID, preferred name, classification, organism."

## Use case

AI agents call chembl.targets.search to retrieve information from Apibase without modifying anything. It is typically the context-gathering step in research, monitoring, and reporting workflows, before the agent takes action elsewhere.

## Recommended policy (PolicyLayer)

Verdict: **Allowed**. Enforced by the PolicyLayer MCP gateway (https://policylayer.com/mcp-gateway) before a call reaches Apibase:

```json
{
  "version": "1",
  "default": "deny",
  "tools": {
    "chembl.targets.search": {}
  }
}
```

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## For agents

This record is a snapshot. Live verdicts and the full registry:

- Check every server in your MCP config at once: `npx -y policylayer stack`
- Vet a server before you add it: install the mcp-precheck skill — `npx skills add https://policylayer.com` (skill text: https://policylayer.com/skill.md)
- Query the registry over MCP: endpoint `https://api.policylayer.com/mcp` — tools `check_mcp_server`, `check_mcp_stack`, `check_tool`, `search_registry`, `get_change_events`

---

Source: the PolicyLayer MCP registry — one continuously verified record per MCP server. Full record: https://policylayer.com/registry?q=io-github-whiteknightonhorse-apibase · API: https://policylayer.com/registry/api · Policy library: https://policylayer.com/policies/io-github-whiteknightonhorse-apibase