# GEO

License: unstated (NOASSERTION); Mdexa hosting: pending. Second pass: redistribution: looser by the source's own words (looser-explicit): 原文明示对分发不设限制（no restrictions on the ... distribution），再分发被明确涉及且为许可；提交者权利主张为丙类不降级。按原文应为 yes；比拟定更宽，交采纳环节决定。

- Commercial use: Unclear · Derivatives: Unclear · Redistribution: Yes · File on Mdexa: No
- License status: Unstated (NOASSERTION)
- Mdexa hosting: Pending — License unstated, judged by public rules and checked by a second-pass model. The license question stays open.
- Last verified: 2026-11-14
- Card: https://mdexa.com/datasets/geo/

## Key facts

- Domain: Genomics and omics
- Content type: Databases
- Size: —
- Language: English
- Modality: Text
- Publisher: NCBI
- Year: —

## Commercial use of GEO

- Commercial use: Unclear (Unstated).
- License status: Unstated.
Verdicts record what sources state and are not legal advice.

## GEO license evidence

the official terms say the data are free to use but not whether commercial use or redistribution is allowed: unstated, terms present (Article 24) Some submitters may claim patent, copyright or other rights in part of the data: check the exceptions before use.

- **Terms of use page**: Statement found in snapshot s04 (terms-page) — "Therefore, NCBI places no restrictions on the use or distribution of the GEO data." — https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/geo/info/disclaimer.html (2026-11-13; Page opened)
- **Terms of use page**: Statement found in snapshot s04 (terms-page) — "However, some submitters may claim patent, copyright, or other intellectual property rights in all or a portion of the data they have submitted." — https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/geo/info/disclaimer.html (2026-11-13; Page opened)
- **Terms of use page**: Statement found in snapshot s04 (terms-page) — "NCBI is not in a position to assess the validity of such claims, and therefore cannot provide comment or unrestricted permission concerning the use, copying, or distribution of the information contained in GEO." — https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/geo/info/disclaimer.html (2026-11-13; Page opened)
- **Terms of use page**: Statement found in snapshot s04 (terms-page) — "Unless otherwise stated, documents and files on NCBI Web servers may be freely downloaded and reproduced." — https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/geo/info/disclaimer.html (2026-11-13; Page opened)
- **Terms of use page**: Statement found in snapshot s04 (terms-page) — "However, some material on this site, such as abstracts, may be copyright protected under the U.S. and foreign copyright laws." — https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/geo/info/disclaimer.html (2026-11-13; Page opened)
- **Terms of use page**: Statement found in snapshot s04 (terms-page) — "For such material, the submitting authors or publishers retain all rights for reproduction or redistribution." — https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/geo/info/disclaimer.html (2026-11-13; Page opened)
- **Terms of use page**: Statement found in snapshot s04 (terms-page) — "Permission to reproduce these documents may be required." — https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/geo/info/disclaimer.html (2026-11-13; Page opened)
- **Terms of use page**: Statement found in snapshot s04 (terms-page) — "All persons reproducing, redistributing, or making commercial use of this information are expected to adhere to the terms and conditions asserted by the copyright holder." — https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/geo/info/disclaimer.html (2026-11-13; Page opened)
- **Dataset page**: Statement found in snapshot s07 (page) — "All GEO records and raw data files are freely available for bulk download from our FTP site." — https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/geo/info/download.html (2026-11-13; Page opened)
- **Dataset page**: Statement found in snapshot s07 (page) — "All GEO DataSet records are freely available for bulk download from our FTP site." — https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/geo/info/download.html (2026-11-13; Page opened)

## Source and lineage

—

## Known issues with GEO

- Some parent directories can no longer be accessed using web browsers due to time-out errors.
- NCBI cannot independently verify the validity, quality or biological significance of submitted data.

## Preflight

Not run (data not ingested).

## Downloading GEO and API access

Mdexa does not serve files. Original source:
- https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/geo/
- https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/geo/info/disclaimer.html

### Access recipe

- GEO FTP site (root, all GEO DataSet records) · ftp://ftp.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/geo/
- GSE1000 matrix directory (example target directory for Series GSE1000) · ftp://ftp.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/geo/series/GSE1nnn/GSE1000/matrix/
- API Construct a URL (GEO accession query): `https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/geo/query/acc.cgi?acc=gpl96&targ=self&view=brief&form=text` · example `https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/geo/query/acc.cgi?acc=gpl96&targ=self&view=brief&form=text`

## Citing GEO

No recommended citation text.

## Machine-readable

- JSON: https://mdexa.com/datasets/geo.json
- 2026-11-14 Some submitters may claim patent, copyright or other rights in part of the data: check the exceptions before use.
- 2026-11-14 Listed on 2026-11-14. Judged by public rules and checked a second time before listing. The two passes disagreed; the stricter reading is carried: Second pass: redistribution: looser by the source's own words (looser-explicit): 原文明示对分发不设限制（no restrictions on the ... distribution），再分发被明确涉及且为许可；提交者权利主张为丙类不降级。按原文应为 yes；比拟定更宽，交采纳环节决定。

## Practical information

### Content scope

- The GEO database is designed to provide and encourage access within the scientific community to the most up to date and comprehensive gene expression and hybridization array data.
  > The GEO database is designed to provide and encourage access within the scientific community to the most up to date and comprehensive gene expression and hybridization array data.
  https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/geo/info/disclaimer.html (2026-11-13)
- The information presented on the GEO web site is based on data submitted by the scientific community.
  > The information presented on the GEO web site is based on data submitted by the scientific community.
  https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/geo/info/disclaimer.html (2026-11-13)

### Identifiers

- A valid GEO accession is in the form gplxxx, gsmxxx or gsexxx.
  > acc = a valid GEO accession i.e., gplxxx, gsmxxx or gsexxx
  https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/geo/info/download.html (2026-11-13)

### Access

- Bulk download: https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/geo/info/download.html
- Bulk download: https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/geo/info/download.html

### Known defects and misuse

- Huang et al. note that elements such as sample source, sex or experimental condition are often missing or inconsistently reported in GEO and SRA.
  > For instance, studies have shown that metadata elements such as sample source, sex, or experimental condition are often missing or inconsistently reported in public repositories like GEO and SRA, limiting reusability [ 1 , 14 ].
  https://pmc.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/articles/PMC12421755/ (2026-11-14)

### Suited for

- Tools and features are provided to facilitate mining and advanced queries, with the aim of assisting identification of observations of interest.
  > Tools and features are provided to facilitate mining and advanced queries, with the aim to assist identification of observations of interest.
  https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/geo/info/disclaimer.html (2026-11-13)

### No sourced statement yet

Latest version, Update cycle, Breaking changes, Unsuited tasks, Commercial licensing

## Continue in this database

This record is one of 109 processed and verified records (datasets, data resources and open models). To find others, call `https://mcp.mdexa.com/v1/datasets?q=<words>` or connect the MCP server at `https://mcp.mdexa.com/mcp`; no key is needed for 20 calls per minute. Rows are under 1 KB; an empty result means "not listed". For a list of items, one batch check (free account) returns a report. Guide: /agents.md. Similar records: AlphaFold Protein Structure Database (https://mdexa.com/datasets/alphafold-db/); gnomAD (https://mdexa.com/datasets/gnomad/); ClinPGx/PharmGKB (https://mdexa.com/datasets/pharmgkb/).