PubChem Citation Guidelines
PubChem contains a wealth of chemical structures, bioactivity, health & safety, spectra data, and more. In addition to the web interface, PubChem provides direct data access via programmatic services and FTP downloads.
If you use data or services from PubChem, proper citation helps readers locate the original source of the work. Some records in PubChem are directly assembled from the contributing organization with attribution provided on the record. Other records, like Compound records, contain derived data in addition to collected annotations with attribution.
Contents
Primary PubChem Citation
Please use the following citation as a general reference for most PubChem data and services:
AMA
MLA
APA
NLM
[Free Full Text at Oxford Journals] [Free Full Text at PubMed Central]
Specific Citation Scenarios
If you would like to reference something more specific in PubChem, either an individual data record or a particular service, browse the following topics.
Reference individual records with in-page Cite button
PubChem contains various types of records; on each page a Cite button exists in the upper-right corner to generate standard reference formats (APA, AMA, MLA, and NLM) for the record.
Alternatively, the record URL provides a regular format including the data type and record identifier.
EXAMPLE: Derived PubChem Compound record for aspirin:
URL: https://pubchem.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/compound/2244
EXAMPLE: Contributed PubChem Substance record for aspirin from ChemIDplus:
URL: https://pubchem.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/substance/134971785
EXAMPLE: Contributed PubChem BioAssay record from Genentech:
URL: https://pubchem.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/bioassay/1224916
EXAMPLE: Derived PubChem Protein Target record for EGFR product:
URL: https://pubchem.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/target/protein/P00533
Reference a particular data section within a record
PubChem collects and computes many pieces of information in each record. To reference a particular data section within a derived record, use the full record URL including the section name suffix. You can easily navigate to the section using the table of contents or scrolling within the page and then copying the URL.
EXAMPLE: Clinical Trials involving the PubChem Compound record for aspirin:
URL: https://pubchem.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/compound/2244#section=Clinical-Trials
EXAMPLE: Chemical Probes identified in a PubChem Target record for EGFR:
URL: https://pubchem.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/substance/134971785#section=Chemical-Probes
Reusing the 2D or 3D structure image of a compound or substance record
You can reuse in your own publication the 2D or 3D structure images presented on PubChem pages, without any special permission from PubChem. Referencing the structure images is done in a similar manner to referencing a data section within a record (as described above). Use the full record URL, followed by the section name suffix, "2D-Structure" or "3D-Conformer".
EXAMPLE: 2D structure image of CID 2244 (aspirin):
URL: https://pubchem.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/compound/2244#section=2D-Structure
EXAMPLE: 3D structure image of CID 2244 (aspirin)
URL: https://pubchem.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/compound/2244#section=3D-Conformer
EXAMPLE: 3D structure image of SID 381317591 (atorvastatin)
URL: https://pubchem.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/substance/381317591#section=3D-Conformer
Cite a paper focused on a particular aspect or service of PubChem
PUG-REST
[Free Full Text in PubMed Central] - includes ability to cite in different formats (AMA, MLA, APA), etc.
PUG-View
[Free Full Text in PubMed Central] - includes ability to cite in different formats (AMA, MLA, APA), etc.
PUG and PUG-SOAP
[Free Full Text in PubMed Central] - includes ability to cite in different formats (AMA, MLA, APA), etc.
PubChem Sketcher
[Free Full Text in PubMed Central] - includes ability to cite in different formats (AMA, MLA, APA), etc.
PubChemRDF
[Free Full Text in PubMed Central] - includes ability to cite in different formats (AMA, MLA, APA), etc.
PubChem3D
[Free Full Text in PubMed Central] - includes ability to cite in different formats (AMA, MLA, APA), etc.
[PubChem3D thematic series at Journal of Cheminformatics]
PubChem Fingerprint
Other
Please see the PubChem Publications for other services or technology not mentioned here.
Find original sources of data
To cite an original source of PubChem data use one of the following:
- Refer to attribution on the PubChem record
- Cite publication linked to record, if present
- Navigate to the source using our PubChem Data Sources page.