Agent skill

Openalex DB

by aipoch in aipoch/medical-research-skills

Access the OpenAlex database (240M+ scholarly works) for bibliometric analysis, literature search, and citation tracking; use when you need to query works/authors/institutions/concepts without an…

MITAuto-check passedResearch & Science

Install Openalex DB

skills CLI

$ npx skills add aipoch/medical-research-skills --skill openalex-db -a claude-code

Project install by default; add -g for ~/.claude/skills/.

GitHub CLI

$ gh skill install aipoch/medical-research-skills openalex-db --agent claude-code

Project scope by default; add --scope user for a personal install. Needs GitHub CLI 2.90.0 or later (public preview).

Manual copy

$ git clone --depth 1 https://github.com/aipoch/medical-research-skills.git skills-src && mkdir -p .claude/skills && cp -r skills-src/'scientific-skills/Evidence Insight/openalex-db' .claude/skills/openalex-db && rm -rf skills-src

Use ~/.claude/skills/ instead of .claude/skills for a personal install. The folder must contain SKILL.md.

Claude Code skills documentation · loads skills from .claude/skills/

Paste into Claude Code

Install the "openalex-db" agent skill from https://github.com/aipoch/medical-research-skills/tree/main/scientific-skills/Evidence%20Insight/openalex-db into .claude/skills/openalex-db/ in this project. Copy the whole folder (SKILL.md and every file beside it), keep the folder name "openalex-db", then confirm the skill loads.

Claude Code copies the folder itself, the same result as the manual copy. Check what it changed before you commit it.

$skill-installer

$skill-installer install https://github.com/aipoch/medical-research-skills/tree/main/scientific-skills/Evidence%20Insight/openalex-db

Type this inside Codex. $skill-installer <name> installs a curated skill from openai/skills. The installer writes to $CODEX_HOME/skills (default ~/.codex/skills). Restart Codex if the skill does not show up.

skills CLI

$ npx skills add aipoch/medical-research-skills --skill openalex-db -a codex

Project install goes to .agents/skills/; add -g for ~/.codex/skills/.

GitHub CLI

$ gh skill install aipoch/medical-research-skills openalex-db --agent codex

Project scope by default (.agents/skills/); add --scope user for a personal install.

Manual copy

$ git clone --depth 1 https://github.com/aipoch/medical-research-skills.git skills-src && mkdir -p .agents/skills && cp -r skills-src/'scientific-skills/Evidence Insight/openalex-db' .agents/skills/openalex-db && rm -rf skills-src

Use ~/.agents/skills/ instead of .agents/skills for a personal install.

Codex skills documentation · loads skills from .agents/skills/

Paste into Codex

Install the "openalex-db" agent skill from https://github.com/aipoch/medical-research-skills/tree/main/scientific-skills/Evidence%20Insight/openalex-db into .agents/skills/openalex-db/ in this project. Copy the whole folder (SKILL.md and every file beside it), keep the folder name "openalex-db", then confirm the skill loads.

Codex copies the folder itself, the same result as the manual copy. Check what it changed before you commit it.

skills CLI

$ npx skills add aipoch/medical-research-skills --skill openalex-db -a cursor

Project install goes to .agents/skills/; add -g for ~/.cursor/skills/.

GitHub CLI

$ gh skill install aipoch/medical-research-skills openalex-db --agent cursor

Project scope by default (.agents/skills/); add --scope user for a personal install.

Manual copy

$ git clone --depth 1 https://github.com/aipoch/medical-research-skills.git skills-src && mkdir -p .cursor/skills && cp -r skills-src/'scientific-skills/Evidence Insight/openalex-db' .cursor/skills/openalex-db && rm -rf skills-src

Use ~/.cursor/skills/ instead of .cursor/skills for a personal install.

Cursor skills documentation · loads skills from .cursor/skills/, .agents/skills/, .claude/skills/, .codex/skills/

Paste into Cursor

Install the "openalex-db" agent skill from https://github.com/aipoch/medical-research-skills/tree/main/scientific-skills/Evidence%20Insight/openalex-db into .cursor/skills/openalex-db/ in this project. Copy the whole folder (SKILL.md and every file beside it), keep the folder name "openalex-db", then confirm the skill loads.

Cursor copies the folder itself, the same result as the manual copy. Check what it changed before you commit it.

gemini skills install

$ gemini skills install https://github.com/aipoch/medical-research-skills.git --path 'scientific-skills/Evidence Insight/openalex-db'

--scope user (default) or --scope workspace; --path is the subfolder of the repo that holds the skill; --consent skips the security confirmation prompt.

skills CLI

$ npx skills add aipoch/medical-research-skills --skill openalex-db -a gemini-cli

Project install goes to .agents/skills/; add -g for ~/.gemini/skills/.

GitHub CLI

$ gh skill install aipoch/medical-research-skills openalex-db --agent gemini-cli

Project scope by default (.agents/skills/); add --scope user for a personal install.

Manual copy

$ git clone --depth 1 https://github.com/aipoch/medical-research-skills.git skills-src && mkdir -p .gemini/skills && cp -r skills-src/'scientific-skills/Evidence Insight/openalex-db' .gemini/skills/openalex-db && rm -rf skills-src

Use ~/.gemini/skills/ instead of .gemini/skills for a personal install, then run /skills reload.

Gemini CLI skills documentation · loads skills from .gemini/skills/, .agents/skills/

Paste into Gemini CLI

Install the "openalex-db" agent skill from https://github.com/aipoch/medical-research-skills/tree/main/scientific-skills/Evidence%20Insight/openalex-db into .gemini/skills/openalex-db/ in this project. Copy the whole folder (SKILL.md and every file beside it), keep the folder name "openalex-db", then confirm the skill loads.

Gemini CLI copies the folder itself, the same result as the manual copy. Check what it changed before you commit it.

GitHub CLI

$ gh skill install aipoch/medical-research-skills openalex-db

Installs for Copilot at project scope by default; add --scope user for a personal install. Preview a skill first with gh skill preview. Needs GitHub CLI 2.90.0 or later (public preview).

skills CLI

$ npx skills add aipoch/medical-research-skills --skill openalex-db -a github-copilot

Project install goes to .agents/skills/; add -g for ~/.copilot/skills/.

Manual copy

$ git clone --depth 1 https://github.com/aipoch/medical-research-skills.git skills-src && mkdir -p .github/skills && cp -r skills-src/'scientific-skills/Evidence Insight/openalex-db' .github/skills/openalex-db && rm -rf skills-src

Use ~/.copilot/skills/ instead of .github/skills for a personal install. Commit .github/skills so cloud agent and code review can use it.

GitHub Copilot skills documentation · loads skills from .github/skills/, .claude/skills/, .agents/skills/

Paste into GitHub Copilot

Install the "openalex-db" agent skill from https://github.com/aipoch/medical-research-skills/tree/main/scientific-skills/Evidence%20Insight/openalex-db into .github/skills/openalex-db/ in this project. Copy the whole folder (SKILL.md and every file beside it), keep the folder name "openalex-db", then confirm the skill loads.

GitHub Copilot copies the folder itself, the same result as the manual copy. Check what it changed before you commit it.

skills CLI

$ npx skills add aipoch/medical-research-skills --skill openalex-db -a opencode

OpenCode documents no install command of its own. Project install goes to .agents/skills/; add -g for ~/.config/opencode/skills/.

GitHub CLI

$ gh skill install aipoch/medical-research-skills openalex-db --agent opencode

Project scope by default (.agents/skills/); add --scope user for a personal install.

Manual copy

$ git clone --depth 1 https://github.com/aipoch/medical-research-skills.git skills-src && mkdir -p .opencode/skills && cp -r skills-src/'scientific-skills/Evidence Insight/openalex-db' .opencode/skills/openalex-db && rm -rf skills-src

Use ~/.config/opencode/skills/ instead of .opencode/skills for a personal install.

OpenCode skills documentation · loads skills from .opencode/skills/, .claude/skills/, .agents/skills/

Paste into OpenCode

Install the "openalex-db" agent skill from https://github.com/aipoch/medical-research-skills/tree/main/scientific-skills/Evidence%20Insight/openalex-db into .opencode/skills/openalex-db/ in this project. Copy the whole folder (SKILL.md and every file beside it), keep the folder name "openalex-db", then confirm the skill loads.

OpenCode copies the folder itself, the same result as the manual copy. Check what it changed before you commit it.

Facts

Skill name: openalex-db
GitHub stars: 2k
Token cost: ~689 tokens
SKILL.md length: 192 words
Files: 4 (incl. scripts, references)
Skills in repo: 567
Repo updated: Sep 17, 2026
First seen: Oct 7, 2026
Licence: MIT

At a glance

Access the OpenAlex database (240M+ scholarly works) for bibliometric analysis, literature search, and citation tracking; use when you need to query works/authors/institutions/concepts without an…

You need to query works/authors/institutions/concepts without an API key
SKILL.md covers When to Use, Key Features, Dependencies and Example Usage, plus 1 more section
Runs Python scripts from its folder; calls uv
Tasks that involve Academic paper search

What it does

Openalex DB is an agent skill from aipoch/medical-research-skills. Access the OpenAlex database (240M+ scholarly works) for bibliometric analysis, literature search, and citation tracking; use when you need to query works/authors/institutions/concepts without an API key.

Its SKILL.md is about 690 tokens, which your agent loads only when the skill is triggered. The skill folder holds 5 other files, including scripts and reference files (for example `openalex-db_audit_result_v1.json`, `references/api_guide.md` and `scripts/openalex_client.py`).

It sits in Research & Science, covering Academic paper search, Literature review and Citation management. The repository describes itself as: Hundreds of agent skills for medical research, including protocol design, data analysis, evidence insights, and academic writing. The licence is MIT.

When your agent uses it

You need to query works/authors/institutions/concepts without an API key
Tasks that involve Academic paper search
Tasks that involve Literature review

Example prompts

“/openalex-db”

Requirements

Python 3

What it can do on your machine

Read from SKILL.md and the folder at commit 686e09d. It shows what the files ask for, not the result of running them.

Tool permissions
Pre-approves nothing: there is no allowed-tools line, so your agent's usual permission prompts apply.
From allowed-tools in the SKILL.md frontmatter.
Runs code
Ships 1 file in scripts/ (Python), which the agent can run.
Shell commands in SKILL.md call:
- uv
From the folder's file list and the shell code blocks in SKILL.md.
Network
No URLs in SKILL.md. Its commands use uv, which can reach the network depending on how they are called.
From URLs in SKILL.md, links to its own repository left out.
Credentials
Names no API keys, tokens, secrets or passwords.
From names ending in _API_KEY, _TOKEN, _SECRET, _KEY or _PASSWORD in SKILL.md.

Context cost

Openalex DB loads about 689 tokens when it runs, and up to ~813 if it reads all its reference files. Until then it costs about 54 tokens; SKILL.md has 192 words of instructions outside code blocks.

Always · name and description, kept in context so the agent knows when to use it: ~54
When it runs · the whole SKILL.md, loaded when a task matches: ~689
With references · SKILL.md plus every file in references/, read only if the agent opens them: ~813

Estimates: characters ÷ 4, the usual rule of thumb; real counts depend on the model's tokenizer. Scripts and assets cost tokens only if the agent reads them.

Safety

Auto-check passed

The automated check found no risky patterns in SKILL.md.

Automated static check — not a guarantee. Review scripts before installing. It scans the text of SKILL.md for risky patterns (piping downloads into a shell, reading credential files, hidden Unicode, destructive commands); the scripts in this folder are not scanned.

SKILL.md

The full file from aipoch/medical-research-skills at commit 686e09d, republished under its MIT licence (© aipoch). 192 words, ~689 tokens.

Download SKILL.mdSave it as .claude/skills/openalex-db/SKILL.md (or your agent's skills folder). This skill also uses 3 other files; get the full folder from GitHub.

name: openalex-db
description: Access the OpenAlex database (240M+ scholarly works) for bibliometric analysis, literature search, and citation tracking; use when you need to query works/authors/institutions/concepts without an API key.
license: MIT
author: AIPOCH

Source: https://github.com/aipoch/medical-research-skills

When to Use

You need to search scholarly works by keyword and filter by properties (e.g., open access, year, venue).
You want to look up authors and analyze their publication output and citation impact.
You need to retrieve and compare institutions (e.g., affiliation-based exploration or benchmarking).
You want to explore concepts/topics and track trends across time.
You need lightweight bibliometric workflows (citation tracking, publication trends) without managing API keys.

Key Features

Query OpenAlex entities: works, authors, institutions, concepts.
Keyword search with filtering support.
Designed for bibliometric tasks such as citation tracking and trend exploration.
No API key required; supports providing an email for OpenAlex Polite Pool (higher rate limits).
Simple Python client wrapper via scripts/openalex_client.py.

Dependencies

requests (version not pinned; install via uv pip install requests)

Example Usage

python

from scripts.openalex_client import OpenAlexClient

def main():
    # Provide an email to use OpenAlex "Polite Pool" (recommended for better rate limits)
    client = OpenAlexClient(email="user@example.com")

    # Search for open-access works related to CRISPR
    works = client.search_works(
        search="CRISPR",
        filter_params={"is_oa": "true"},
    )

    print(f"Found {len(works)} works")
    if works:
        first = works[0]
        # Field names depend on OpenAlex response schema
        print("First result:")
        print(f"  id: {first.get('id')}")
        print(f"  title: {first.get('title')}")
        print(f"  publication_year: {first.get('publication_year')}")
        print(f"  cited_by_count: {first.get('cited_by_count')}")

if __name__ == "__main__":
    main()

Implementation Details

Client entry point: scripts/openalex_client.py provides the main API wrapper (OpenAlexClient).
Polite Pool: Supplying an email is recommended to receive higher rate limits from OpenAlex.
Search + filters: Work queries accept a free-text search string plus filter_params (key/value pairs) that map to OpenAlex API filters (e.g., {"is_oa": "true"}).
Pagination and schema: For supported filters, pagination behavior, and response fields, refer to references/api_guide.md.

Files

SKILL.md and 3 other files (scripts, references) in scientific-skills/Evidence Insight/openalex-db of aipoch/medical-research-skills.

SKILL.md
openalex-db_audit_result_v1.json
references/api_guide.md
scripts/openalex_client.py

Open the folder on GitHubat commit 686e09d

Compare with similar skills

Openalex DB next to the 5 skills that share the most tags, products or categories with it. Stars are the repository's; “used in” counts other GitHub owners with a copy.

Openalex DB compared with similar skills
Skill	Stars	Used in	Tokens	Auto-check	Licence	Repo updated
Openalex DB this skillaipoch/medical-research-skills	2k	—	~689	Automated safety check: Pass	MIT	21 days ago
Literature Reviewneflibata-feng/MyArxiv-Agent	126	21 repos	~5.9k	Automated safety check: Notes	MIT	yesterday
Preprint Search on bioRxivLigphiDonk/Oh-my--paper	738	13 repos	~3.7k	Automated safety check: Pass	MIT	5 mo ago
Paper Research on arXivXiaomiMiMo/MiMo-Code	14k	1 repos	~1.5k	Automated safety check: Pass	MIT	5 days ago
Literature Review AgentAr9av/PaperOrchestra	677	2 repos	~5.2k	Automated safety check: Pass	Custom licence	17 days ago
Systematic Literature Review Builderbytedance/deer-flow	83k	2 repos	~4.3k	Automated safety check: Pass	MIT	today

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126 GitHub starsUsed in 21 repos~5.9k tokens
Research & ScienceAuto-check: notes
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Research & ScienceAuto-check passed
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Research & ScienceAuto-check passed
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Research & ScienceAuto-check passed
Systematic Literature Review Builder
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Questions about Openalex DB

What does Openalex DB do?

Access the OpenAlex database (240M+ scholarly works) for bibliometric analysis, literature search, and citation tracking; use when you need to query works/authors/institutions/concepts without an…. Openalex DB is an agent skill from aipoch/medical-research-skills. Access the OpenAlex database (240M+ scholarly works) for bibliometric analysis, literature search, and citation tracking; use when you need to query works/authors/institutions/concepts without an API key.

When should I use Openalex DB?

Openalex DB fits situations like: you need to query works/authors/institutions/concepts without an API key; tasks that involve Academic paper search; tasks that involve Literature review.

How do I install Openalex DB in Claude Code?

Run `npx skills add aipoch/medical-research-skills --skill openalex-db -a claude-code`. Or copy the skill folder (scientific-skills/Evidence Insight/openalex-db in aipoch/medical-research-skills) into .claude/skills/openalex-db in your project. Claude Code loads it when a task matches its description.

How do I install Openalex DB in Codex?

Run `npx skills add aipoch/medical-research-skills --skill openalex-db -a codex`. Or copy the skill folder (scientific-skills/Evidence Insight/openalex-db in aipoch/medical-research-skills) into .agents/skills/openalex-db in your project. Codex loads it when a task matches its description.

Can I use Openalex DB in Cursor, Gemini CLI or GitHub Copilot?

Cursor, Gemini CLI, GitHub Copilot and OpenCode also load SKILL.md folders. With the skills CLI, run `npx skills add aipoch/medical-research-skills --skill openalex-db -a cursor` (or -a gemini-cli, github-copilot or opencode for the others). To copy it by hand, put the folder in .cursor/skills/openalex-db, .gemini/skills/openalex-db, .github/skills/openalex-db and .opencode/skills/openalex-db in your project.

What does Openalex DB need to run?

Going by SKILL.md and its folder, Openalex DB needs Python for the scripts in its folder and the command-line tools its instructions call (uv). Our summary lists: Python 3.

Does Openalex DB access the network?

SKILL.md contains no URLs. Its commands use uv, which can reach the network depending on how they are called. This is read from the text; nothing was executed.

Is Openalex DB safe to install?

Our automated static check of SKILL.md found no risky patterns, such as piping downloads into a shell, reading credential files or hidden Unicode. It is not a guarantee. The check reads SKILL.md only: the scripts in the folder are not scanned, so read them before running anything.

What licence does Openalex DB use?

Openalex DB is published under the MIT licence (declared in SKILL.md). It allows redistribution, so the full SKILL.md is shown on this page.

How many tokens does Openalex DB use?

About 689 tokens (SKILL.md is roughly 2.8k characters). Agents keep only the skill's name and description in context until a task matches; then they load SKILL.md in full. Its references folder adds about 124 tokens, read only when the agent opens those files.

What are the alternatives to Openalex DB?

Skills that share tags, products or a category with Openalex DB: Literature Review (neflibata-feng/MyArxiv-Agent, 126 stars), Preprint Search on bioRxiv (LigphiDonk/Oh-my--paper, 738 stars), Paper Research on arXiv (XiaomiMiMo/MiMo-Code, 14k stars) and Literature Review Agent (Ar9av/PaperOrchestra, 677 stars). The comparison table on this page puts their stars, adoption, token cost, safety result and licence side by side.

Who maintains Openalex DB?

aipoch (a GitHub organization) maintains it in aipoch/medical-research-skills, which has 1,974 GitHub stars. The repository holds 567 skills in this directory. The repository was last updated on September 17, 2026.

Source: aipoch/medical-research-skills on GitHub. Facts on this page come from the repository at the commit we read; the author's words are quoted as theirs.

Openalex DB

Install Openalex DB

Facts

At a glance

What it does

When your agent uses it

Example prompts

Requirements

What it can do on your machine

Tool permissions

Runs code

Network

Credentials

Context cost

Safety

SKILL.md

When to Use

Key Features

Dependencies

Example Usage

Implementation Details

Files

Compare with similar skills

Similar skills

Literature Review

Preprint Search on bioRxiv

Paper Research on arXiv

Literature Review Agent

Systematic Literature Review Builder

Autonomous Research

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Questions about Openalex DB

Install Openalex DB

Facts

At a glance

What it does

When your agent uses it

Example prompts

Requirements

What it can do on your machine

Tool permissions

Runs code

Network

Credentials

Context cost

Safety

SKILL.md

When to Use

Key Features

Dependencies

Example Usage

Implementation Details

Files

Compare with similar skills

Similar skills

More from aipoch/medical-research-skills

Related

Questions about Openalex DB