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Cowork Bio-Research Plugin

Connector Data & Analytics Usable
Usable Reviewed

The most specialized Cowork plugin — 10 life sciences connectors covering literature (PubMed, bioRxiv), genomics (Open Targets), and lab tools (Benchling).

Life sciences research assistant with connectors for PubMed, BioRender, bioRxiv, ClinicalTrials.gov, ChEMBL, Synapse, Wiley, Owkin, Open Targets, and Benchling. 10 specialized integrations for preclinical R&D.

10,917 starsApache-2.0 (commercial OK)FreeNo code needed
Built and maintained by Anthropic, the makers of Claude.
Usable rating — This tool is functional but has notable gaps. Review the evaluation notes below before deploying.

The most specialized Cowork plugin — 10 life sciences connectors covering literature (PubMed, bioRxiv), genomics (Open Targets), and lab tools (Benchling).

Life sciences researchers, biotech teams, preclinical R&D. Only useful for this domain.

Claude Code Claude Cowork Claude Chat

https://github.com/anthropics/knowledge-work-plugins

By Anthropic

How to Get It

Option 1: Claude Desktop AppOpen the Customize panel in the sidebar → browse connectors → search and add. Works in Claude Code, Claude Cowork, and Claude Chat.
Option 2: Paste into Claude CodeCopy the command below and paste it into a Claude Code conversation. Claude will run it for you.
Command
claude plugin install bio-research@knowledge-work-plugins

Tip: Paste this into a Claude Code conversation. Verify command matches your Claude Code version.

PrerequisitesClaude Cowork (Pro/Max/Team/Enterprise). Benchling or Synapse access recommended.Time to functional~20 minCostFree — Requires Claude Pro ($20/mo) or higher

Trust Signals Reviewed

Stars10,917Contributors16Last updated2026-04-04LicenseApache-2.0 (OK for commercial use)Known CVEsNone foundSources: GitHub Advisory Database + OSV.dev · Scanned 2026-04-06 · scanner v1
⚠ Data last scanned 2026-04-06 (88 days ago) — may not reflect the tool's current state.

Data & Access

Data processingProcessed by Anthropic (the makers of Claude)

Reviewer notes

Reviewed review. These are observations, not a security certification.

10.8K stars repo, Anthropic-official. Highly specialized, narrow audience. 10 MCP integrations.

Anthropic-official knowledge-work-plugins repo. 10.8K stars. Connectors are account-scoped, not workspace-scoped (JJ Englert finding).

2026-05-10: Solid connective tissue for biotech and preclinical R&D teams already juggling PubMed, Benchling, and ClinicalTrials.gov—this MCP server pulls those sources into Claude rather than forcing tab-switching. The practical catch: you're provisioning and maintaining credentials for up to 10 separate services, and connector quality is uneven (Wiley access will likely block most users without institutional licenses). Three production mentions against 10k+ stars suggests early adopters are kicking the tires more than running it in production pipelines. Worth piloting if your team is deep in literature-to-experiment workflows, but budget time for integration setup per connector.

2026-04-02: LIMITATION: Most specialized plugin in the bundle. Commercial tool connectors (Benchling, Owkin) require enterprise accounts and manual credential setup.

2026-03-29: Connectors: PubMed, BioRender, bioRxiv, ClinicalTrials.gov, ChEMBL, Synapse, Wiley, Owkin, Open Targets, Benchling. Official repo: https://github.com/anthropics/knowledge-work-plugins/tree/main/bio-research

2026-03-29: SECURITY FINDING (JJ Englert, Mar 2026): Cowork connectors are scoped at the Anthropic account level, NOT the workspace level. A connector added in one Cowork workspace is accessible in ALL workspaces under the same Anthropic account. This means: (1) connectors with sensitive access (email, calendar, CRM) bleed across all projects/workspaces; (2) multi-tenant setups sharing an Anthropic account are NOT isolated at the connector level; (3) evaluate connector blast radius across the full account, not just the workspace being configured. Source: https://github.com/JJenglert1/getting-started-with-claude-cowork

How to evaluate tools before deploying →

Data shown here comes from public APIs and automated scanning. Reviewer notes reflect one person's experience. This is not a security certification or legal recommendation. Always evaluate tools according to your own organization's policies.

Evaluation

Ease of Use
3/5
Versatility
2/5
Reliability
4/5
Security
4/5
Overall score3.15 / 5.00 UsableEvaluatedApr 2026
10.8K stars repo, Anthropic-official. Highly specialized, narrow audience. 10 MCP integrations.

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