U. OF ILLINOIS
BIOLOGY
L I B R A RY
Electronic Resources
Electronic Indexes & Abstracts
for the Life Sciences
Indexes and abstracts (I&A) are resources used to locate information about periodical articles and sometimes other literature types. Electronic
versions of indexes and abstracts are commonly referred to as article, biographic, or literature databases. Many times there are one or more
links to the complete full text of articles along with the article I&A record. In a selected and growing number of article databases, University
Library electronic journal subscriptions and other useful resources (e.g., the Online Library Catalog and Library Interlibrary Loan) are also
accessible via the “Discover” <http://www.library.uiuc.edu/discover/> button.
When there is an article record without access to the full text article, the Library Online Library Catalog <http://www.library.uiuc.edu/catalog/>
(available via the University Library Gateway <http://www.library.uiuc.edu/> or any departmental library Web site) can be searched to see if the
journal title, volume, and issue in which the article is located is available at a Campus library. Many electronic article databases have a link
directly to our Online Library Catalog so you can see the Library holdings (e.g., volumes and issues) and locations (print and/or electronic)
for that title. If it is not, an interlibrary loan request for the item can made <http://www.library.uiuc.edu/irrc/>. And if there is a Discover
button, an electronic form is automatically generated for the item so that all you have to do is submit it! If available from another source, a
free electronic or print copy will be provided to Campus students, faculty, and staff. Typically this takes 3-7 days, but in some cases it may
take as little as one day.
The following are descriptions you can use to determine which online article databases are the most appropriate for your research topic.
Electronic indexes and abstracts can be accessed from the Library Gateway bar on each departmental library's homepage by selecting
Online Research Resources (ORR) from this bar. The ORR is a database that provides access to most electronic information resources
(e-journals, e-books, electronic indexes and abstracts) the Library has available. Click on the Help tab for more information about the ORR
and how to search it. Links to major indexes and abstracts for the life sciences such as Biological Abstracts, Current Contents, PubMed
(MEDLINE), Science Citation Index, and Other Biology Indexes and Abstracts can also be accessed directly from the Biology Library
homepage <http://www.library.uiuc.edu/bix> as well as below. Most electronic resources are available off-Campus to UIUC affiliates via
their NetID and password.
Academic OneFile (InfoTrac) (1995-present)
Academic OneFile is a comprehensive database of more than 10,000 journals covering everything from STM to the humanities, most of
which provide the full-text article. Discover links to full text when applicable.
Academic Search Premier (EBSCOhost) (1950-present; updated daily)
Academic multi-disciplinary database, Academic Search Premier provides full text for nearly 4,700 publications, including more than 3,600
peer-reviewed journals. It additionally provides indexing and abstracts for 8,200 journals. PDF backfiles to 1975 or further are available for
well over one hundred journals, and searchable cited references are provided for more than 1,000 titles. Discover links to full text when
applicable.
Aquatic Sciences and Fisheries Abstracts (ASFA) 1: Biological Sciences and Living Resources (1971-current; updated monthly) A
subfile of Environmental Sciences and Pollution Management (below) via Cambridge Scientific Abstacts Illumina.
This database provides extensive coverage of basic and applied research on aquatic organisms (marine, freshwater, and brackish),
including biology and ecology of aquatic organisms, exploitation of living resources, aquaculture, food technology productivity,
conservation, and marketing. Contains over 668,000 records from over 4,500 journals, books, reports, and conference proceedings.
Discover links to full text when applicable.
Aquatic Sciences and Fisheries Abstracts (ASFA) 3: Aquatic pollution and environmental quality (1990-current; updated monthly)
A subfile of Environmental Sciences and Pollution Management (below) via Cambridge Scientific Abstacts Illumina.
“The only abstracts journal devoted exclusively to research and policy on the contamination of oceans, seas, lakes, rivers, and estuaries.
ASFA 3 contains information that will prove essential to specialists who deal in any capacity with aquatic environments and marine
pollution problems, including biologists, oceanographers, limnologists, environmental engineers and scientists, industrial engineers, waste
managers, corporate regulatory affairs managers, and government officials.” Discover links to full text when applicable.
AGRICOLA (Agriculture Online Access)via SilverPlatter (1970-current; updated quarterly)
AGRICOLA (Agriculture Online Access) is the bibliographic database of the National Agricultural Library, indexes over 2,000 U.S. journals
in agricultural and related sciences, including animal and veterinary sciences, entomology, plant sciences, forestry, aquaculture and
fisheries, farming and farming systems, agricultural economics and earth and environmental sciences. It also indexes selected
audiovisuals materials, book chapters, monographs, series, maps, microforms, theses, and technical reports. Some indexed print
materials date back to the 15th century. AGRICOLA serves as the document locator and bibliographic control system for the NAL
collection. Discover links to full text when applicable.
Agricultural & Environmental Biotechnology Abstracts (1993-current; updated monthly) A subfile of Environmental Sciences and
Pollution Management (below) via Cambridge Scientific Abstacts Illumina.
Contains over 51,000 entries and covers topics such as plant and animal agricultural products, plant genome studies, biotechnology,
genetic engineering, cell culture, and wide-ranging environmental developments. It covers over 150 journals to some degree. Food,
chemical, pharmaceutical, and biotechnology as they relate to the fields of agriculture and the environment are most important to this list.
Discover links to full text when applicable. Discover links to full text when applicable.
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Bacteriology Abstracts (Microbiology B) (1982-current; updated monthly) A subfile of Environmental Sciences and Pollution
Management (below) via Cambridge Scientific Abstacts Illumina
“Identifies articles on bacteriology and related subjects in relation to medicine. Includes topics ranging from bacterial immunology and
vaccinations to diseases of man and animals. Provides access to clinical findings as well as all aspects of pure bacteriology, biochemistry,
and genetics. Is a subset of the larger database, Environmental Sciences & Pollution Management.” Discover links to full text when
applicable.
Biological Abstracts (BIOSIS) via Thomson Scientific Web of Knowledge (1926-current; updated monthly)
Indexes over 4,000 in the life sciences. Articles indexed in this database are scholarly, scientific works published in refereed journals. This
is the best index to use when looking for research articles in the biological sciences, such as biology, botany, cell biology, molecular
biology, microbiology, biochemistry, physiology, medicine, and zoology. A print version is available from 1926 (v. 1) to 2000 (shelved in the
bibliography section on the middle floor - Call Number: 570.5 BIOA). Discover links to full text when applicable.
Biological Sciences and Living Resources See Aquatic Sciences and Fisheries Abstracts 1
BioOne Abtracts and Indexes via Cambridge Scientific Abstacts Illumina (1998-present)
Identifies articles in the biological journals included in the BioOne project in such areas as botany, genetics, ecology, entomology, fish,
mammals, natural history, photobiology, wetlands, parasitology, zoology, and more. BioOne provides a unique aggregation of over 80
high-impact bioscience research journals from more than 65 publishers. Most of BioOne's titles are published by small societies and noncommercial publishers, and were, previous to BioOne, available only in printed form. Additional titles are being added frequently.
Discover links to full text when applicable.
CAB Abstracts via SilverPlatter (Includes CABI Abstracts Archives; 1910-current; updated monthly)
CAB (Commonwealth Agricultural Bureaux) Abstracts is the most comprehensive and integrated international agricultural and applied life
sciences database in the world. It indexes over 11,000 international scientific journals in addition to books, book chapters, technical
reports, theses, and conference proceedings covering all aspects of agriculture, vet and animal science, soil science, natural and
environmental resources, nutrition, and biotechnology. Discover links to full text when applicable.
Chemical Abstracts (See SciFinder Scholar)
Dissertations Abstracts Online (see ProQuest Digital Dissertations)
Ecology Abstracts (1982 - current; updated monthly) A subfile of Environmental Sciences and Pollution Management (below) via
Cambridge Scientific Abstacts Illumuna
Identifies journal articles on current ecology research. "Focuses on how organisms of all kinds - microbes, plants, and animals - interact
with their environments and with other organisms. Included are relevant papers on evolutionary biology, economics, and systems analysis
as they relate to ecosystems or the environment." Discover links to full text when applicable.
EMBASE (1974-current; updated every 2 weeks)
EMBASE is a biomedical and pharmacological database which gives you access to the most up-to-date information about medical and
drug-related subjects. 80% pf records include author-written abstracts. Simultaneously searches Embase and MEDLINE (1966-present
via ScienceDirect). Discover links to full text when applicable.
Environmental Sciences and Pollution Management via Cambridge Scientific Abstracts Illumna (1967-current; updated monthly)
This database indexes 6,000 scientific journals in addition to many other sources such as conference proceedings, reports, books,
monographs and government documents. It is international in scope and is updated monthly. Has several subfiles, including: Agricultural
and Environmental Biotechnology Abstracts, Ecology Abstracts, and Toxicology Abstracts. Discover links to full text when applicable.
ERIC is also available through 3 different vendors – same contents, different platforms – your choice! Eric via EBSCO; ERIC via Ovid;
or ERIC via OCLC ArticlesFirst (1966-current; updated monthly)
The Education Resources Information Center (ERIC), sponsored by the Institute of Education Sciences (IES) of the U.S. Department of
Education, produces this premier database of journal and non-journal education literature. All sources provide some full text; Discover
links to full text when applicable in EBSCO and Ovid.
Expanded Academic ASAP (EAI) (InfoTrac) via Thomson Gale (1980-current)
Indexes a wide variety of topics covering every academic discipline, including general science, from nearly 3,500 scholarly and popular
interdisciplinary journals, as well as national news magazines, and the last 6 months of the New York Times (indexed only). About 2/3 of
the entries include full text. Discover links to full text when applicable.
Faculty of 1000 published by BioMed Central (2002-present)
Identifies important biological papers based on the recommendations of leading scientists. Particularly useful for biology graduate students
and researchers. In F1000, biology is divided into 16 faculties, or subjects: Biochemistry; Bioinformatics; Biotechnology; Cell biology;
Chemical biology; Developmental biology; Ecology; Evolutionary biology; Genomics & genetics; Immunology; Microbiology; Molecular
biology; Molecular medicine; Neuroscience; Physiology; Plant biology; Structural biology. Leading researchers (the Faculty) pick new
papers to review, commenting on the perceived significance of the selected papers. Features include the ability to view all the key papers
within a particular topic or subtopic. Discover links to full text when applicable.
Fish & Fisheries Worldwide (1971 and earlier-present; updated quarterly) Via EBSCO
Via Biblioline (NISC)
Fish & Fisheries Worldwise is an aggregation of 12 ichthyology, fisheries, aquaculture, and aquatic biology bibliographic databases from
around the world. Includes FISHLIT, Aquatic Biology Citations (ABC), Fishing Industry Research Index (FIRI), Fisheries Review, Worldfish
Center’s Library (previously ICLARM), a fish subset from Medline and Castell’s Nutrition index. FFW includes deep links from the
This guide is available at http://www.library.uiuc.edu/bix/electron.pdf
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taxonomic field to FishBase which offers full-text species profiles and fish illustrations for 29 000 fish species. Indexes journal articles,
research reports, conference proceedings, grey literature, books, monographs, theses and dissertations and citations. Provides over
800,000 citations and abstracts with direct links to full text, author contact information, and links to publisher’s websites. more
Google Scholar
Google Scholar enables you to search specifically for scholarly literature, including peer-reviewed papers, theses, books, preprints,
abstracts and technical reports from all broad areas of research. Use Google Scholar to find articles from a wide variety of academic
publishers, professional societies, preprint repositories and universities, as well as scholarly articles available across the web. Just as with
Google Web Search, Google Scholar orders your search results by how relevant they are to your query, so the most useful references
should appear at the top of the page. This relevance ranking takes into account the full text of each article as well as the article's author,
the publication in which the article appeared and how often it has been cited in scholarly literature. Google Scholar also automatically
analyzes and extracts citations and presents them as separate results, even if the documents they refer to are not online. This means your
search results may include citations of older works and seminal articles that appear only in books or other offline publications. Discover
links to full text when applicable.
*InfoTrac
See Expanded Academic Index (InfoTrac)
Journals@Ovid ((formerly, CBC)) (1996-present for all journals; 1993-present for select journals in Ovid)
Provides bibliographic citations and abstracts including article references to hundreds of scientific, technical, and medical journals from
over 50 publishers and societies. Full text for Ovid Full Text journals the Library subscribes to.
MEDLINE via Ovid (1966-current); via PubMed (1949-current); via Thomson Scientific Web of Knowledge (1950-current) (See
PubMed below for content description) Discover links to full text in PubMed and TS when applicable.
Microsoft Live Search Academic
The full text of scholarly journals and conference proceedings from participating academic publishers are accessed and indexed with
abstracts when available. Unique two pane interface allows preview of item record without clicking to full text. Full text may be available
through open source, linked to University Library journal subscriptions (for campus students, faculty, and staff), or for fee/subscription. If
free text not automatically linked to, check Library Online Research Resources (ORR) database or Online Library Catalog to check for
local access.
National Technical Information Service (NTIS) Database (1964-current)
The largest central resource for government-funded scientific, technical, engineering, and business related information available today.
For 60 years NTIS has assured businesses, universities, and the public timely access to well over 3 million publications covering over 350
subject areas. NTIS Database includes in-depth coverage of scientific, technical, engineering, and business-related research sponsored
by the U.S. Government and international sources. http://www.ntis.gov/
ProQuest Digital Dissertations (1861- current)
Dissertation Abstracts (via ProQuest) [aka Digital Dissertations) is an electronic resource that identifies doctoral dissertations from U.S. &
Canadian institutions. Abstracts begin from 1980. Full text dissertations from 1997 to present are available via ProQuest Digital
Dissertations. Requires email address. Link to the thesis full text will be provided through a URL which accesses a PDF. The PDF can
then be saved or printed. Downloading may take several minutes. UIUC Library IRRC (Interlibrary Loan) can arrange for borrowing pre1997 dissertations or others that cannot be obtained via ProQuest Digital Dissertations if available for loan. For more information see How
do the Digital Dissertations and the Dissertation Express Service work? and Finding Dissertations by the UIUC Central Reference Library.
PubMed (MEDLINE) (1950-current; updated daily)
PubMed, which includes MEDLINE, indexes over 15,000,000 references from over 4,800 international biomedical and life sciences
journals. Use this database when searching for articles in the broad field of biomedicine (including toxicology, nutrition, pharmacology and
veterinary medicine). PubMed is one of the Entrez databases produced by the National Library of Medicine’s (NLM) National Center for
Biotechnology Information (NCBI). Other searchable Entrez databases include nucleotide sequences, protein sequences, macromolecular
structures, Online Mendelian Inheritance in Man (OMIM), several online books, and whole genomes. Note: Some full-text articles are
available. Use links from UIUC Library Web site to gain access to additional articles from electronic full-text journals that we subscribe to
which is indicated by a "Full Text Provided by UIUC Library" button as well as Discover links to full text when applicable.
PsycINFO via Cambridge Scientific Abstracts Illumina (1806-current; updated weekly)
PsycINFO is the major psychology database covering articles from over 1,800 international journals;
sujmaries of books, book chapters, and technical reports; as well as dissertations and reviews, in animal behavior, neurobiology, and
physiological psychology. Includes articles related to psychology in areas such as psychiatry, education, business, medicine, nursing,
pharmacology, law, linguistics, and social work. Additionally, there are more than 8 million cited references in 185,000 journal articles,
books, and book chapters. All records from 1967 to the present are indexed using the Thesaurus of Psychological Index Terms.
Discover links to full text when applicable.
Science Citation Index Expanded via Web of Science (Web of Knowledge) (1970-current; updated weekly)
ISI's Web of Science includes the Science Citation Index (SCI) which provides complete bibliographic data, full-length author abstracts,
and cited references. The cited reference feature of this database is its most significant feature; you can use SCI to see articles authors
cite within their research. This multidisciplinary database indexes 8,500 major journals, including those in biology, neuroscience,
biochemistry, veterinary medicine, and zoology. Discover links to full text when applicable.
ScienceDirect (Varies-present; titles back to volume 1, issue 1)
Contains over 25% of the world's science, technology and medicine full text and bibliographic information, including over 1,000 titles in
several life sciences areas such as Agricultural and Biological Sciences , Biochemistry, Genetics and Molecular Biology , Environmental
Science , Immunology and Microbiology , and Neuroscience . Also contains books series, handbooks, and reference works.
This guide is available at http://www.library.uiuc.edu/bix/electron.pdf
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SciFinder Scholar (Chemical Abstracts) Requires program dowload. Details here. Web edition will be coming soon !
SCIRUS
Scirus is the most comprehensive science-specific search engine on the Internet. Driven by the latest search engine technology, Scirus
searches over 200 million science-specific Web pages, enabling you to quickly: Pinpoint scientific, scholarly, technical and medical data
on the Web. Find the latest reports, peer-reviewed articles, patents, pre prints and journals that other search engines miss. Offer unique
functionalities designed for scientists and researchers
SCOPUS (1960-current)
Identifies scientific articles in over 14,000 peer-reviewed journals from more than 4,000 international publishers. Multidisciplinary coverage
includes health, agriculture, chemistry, physics, life sciences, mathematics, engineering, earth and environmental sciences, social science,
psychology, and economics, business and management. Discover links to full text when applicable.
Toxicology Abstracts (1981-present; updated monthly) A subfile of Environmental Sciences and Pollution Management (below) via
Cambridge Scientific Abstacts Illumuna
Identifies journal articles on current toxicology research. “Covers issues from social poisons and substance abuse to natural toxins, from
legislation and recommended standards to environmental issues. Surveying the literature for toxicology studies of industrial and
agricultural chemicals, household products, pharmaceuticals, and myriad other substances, each issue publishes information concerning
the in vivo effects of toxic substances. Topics of current concern such as the effects of alcohol and smoking, drug abuse, hydrocarbon
studies, nitrosamines, radiation and radioactive materials, and much more are extensively examined.” Discover links to full text when
applicable.
TOXLINEª (TOXicology information onLINE) via Cambridge Scientific Abstracts (1998-current)
Bibliographic database for toxicology from the the National Library of Medicine's (NLM) containing over 3 million bibliographic citations,
most with abstracts and/or indexing terms and CAS Registry Numbers. Encompasses many disciplines. Provides bibliographic
information covering the biochemical, pharmacological, physiological, and toxicological effects of drugs and other chemicals. Discover
links to full text when applicable.
TOXNET: Toxicology Data Network (dates vary by database, some have citations from 1940’s)
TOXNET <http://toxnet.nlm.nih.gov> is a collection of databases of articles, chemicals and toxicological information provided by the
National Library of Medicine (NLM). Some of the article databases go back as far as 1980 with some full text access. Includes TOXLINE
(index to research results in books, journals, and technical reports on biochemical, pharmacological, physiological, and toxicological
effects of drugs and other chemicals.); ChemIDPlus (numerous chemical synonyms, structures, regulatory list information, and links to
other databases containing information about the chemicals); CCRIS (Chemical Carcinogenesis Research Information System); DART
(Developmental and Reproductive Toxicology and Environmental Teratology Information Center - Current and older literature on
developmental and reproductive toxicology); GENE-TOX (provides mutagenicity test data); IRIS (Integrated Risk Information System data from the EPA in support of human health risk assessment, focusing on hazard identification and dose-response assessment); ITER
(chemical risk information from authoritative groups); LactMed (database of drugs to which breastfeeding mothers may be exposed, plus
maternal and infant levels of drugs, possible effects on breastfed infants and on lactation, and alternate drugs to consider);
HSDB
(Hazardous Substance Data Bank); and TRI (Toxic Release Inventory) which provides the long-range release information of pollutants,
and others. Some citations link to PubMed citations where Discover links to full text when applicable.
Wildlife & Ecology Studies Worldwide (1935 & earlier-present; updated monthly) via EBSCO
via Biblioline (NISC)
Wildlife & Ecology Studies Worldwide is the world’s largest index to literature on wild mammals, birds, reptiles, and amphibians — nearly
698,078 bibliographic records, many include abstracts. On all aspects of wildlife and wildlife management are covered in this
comprehensive volume. Subject cverage includes mammals, birds, reptiles, amphibians, behavior, habitat use, damage, foods/feeding,
management techniques, habitat , management, habitat alteration, captive-animal care, endangered species, threatened species, traffic &
disturbance, forestry, parasites/disease, pesticides/pollution, physiology, morphology, ecosystems, genetics, communities, hunting
(pro/con), population ecology, life history, habits/behavior, and distribution. more
WilsonSelectPlus via OCLC FirstSearch (1994-current; updated weekly)
Indexes over 2,100 sources in the topics of science, humanities, education and business from various Wilson databases, including
Readers’ Guide Abstracts (Online version of the Reader's Guide to the Periodical Literature ) and General Science Abstracts with access
to full-text articles. Includes periodical titles such as Wilderness, BioScience, Environment, American Midland Naturalist and Issues in
Science and Technology.
Zoological Record via Thomson Scientific Web of Knowledge (1864-current; updated monthly)
Zoological Record provides the most comprehensive coverage of worldwide zoological literature. The covers about 5,000 journals, as well
as books, book chapters, proceedings, reports, and review annuals in the area of zoology, including behavior, ecology, evolution, habitat,
morphology, nutrition, parasitology, reproduction, systematics,. taxonomy, and zoogeography. Gives detailed classifications of animal
species. With abstracts for items published after 2001. Discover links to full text when applicable.
Journal Citation Management
RefWorks
A Web-based citation manager. Collect references from online databases. Insert the references into your paper using Write-N-Cite, which
automatically formats the paper and the works cited. UIUC affiliates sign up for a free individual account.
This guide is available at http://www.library.uiuc.edu/bix/electron.pdf
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Journal Evaluation
Journal Citation Reports via ISI Web of Knowledge
The Journal Citation Reports (JCR) [aka ISI Journal Citation Reports] is a unique tool to help evaluate and compare journals using citation
data. It is broadly divided into the Sciences and Social Sciences divisions. Inside the two divisions it can be limited to specific subject
areas (e.g., Zoology, or Genetics) or can be searched for a single journal. For each journal data on the impact factor, the immediacy
index, citation half-lives, citation counts and other miscellaneous information are available for over 5900 science and technology journals
and over 1700 social sciences journals in approximately 200 disciplines from more than 3300 publishers in over 60 countries.
This guide is available at http://www.library.uiuc.edu/bix/electron.pdf
Last updated 2/2/2009—mma