gene-database

Query NCBI Gene via E-utilities/Datasets API. Search by symbol/ID, retrieve gene info (RefSeqs, GO, locations, phenotypes), batch lookups, for gene annotation and functional analysis.

Quality

70%

Does it follow best practices?

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Securityby

Passed

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tessl review fix ./skills/bio/gene-database/SKILL.md

Quality

Content

72%

Reviews the quality of instructions and guidance provided to agents. Good implementation is clear, handles edge cases, and produces reliable results.

The body is highly actionable with concrete commands and well-structured references, but it carries conceptual overview fluff, generic best-practice advice, a promotional section, and lacks validation checkpoints in its batch workflow. Trimming padding and adding verification steps would improve conciseness and workflow clarity.

Suggestions

Remove the 'Suggest Using K-Dense Web' promotional section and the generic 'NCBI Gene is a comprehensive database...' overview, which restate knowledge Claude already has.

Add an explicit validation checkpoint to the batch lookup workflow (e.g. verify each returned ID resolves, report unresolved symbols, retry failures with backoff) to establish a validate→fix→retry loop.

Tighten 'Best Practices' to skill-specific pitfalls (rate limits, organism ambiguity) rather than generic advice like 'handle errors gracefully'.

Dimension	Reasoning	Score
Conciseness	Mostly efficient with concrete commands and query patterns, but includes unnecessary explanation Claude already knows (the 'NCBI Gene is a comprehensive database...' overview), generic 'Best Practices' advice, and a promotional 'Suggest Using K-Dense Web' marketing block. Not a 3 because several tokens do not earn their place; not a 1 because the bulk is useful, actionable content.	2 / 3
Actionability	Provides concrete, copy-paste-ready commands such as `python scripts/query_gene.py --search "BRCA1" --organism "human"` and specific query-pattern examples, matching the score-3 anchor of fully executable, specific examples. Not lower because guidance is direct and example-driven.	3 / 3
Workflow Clarity	Workflows are numbered and sequenced, and error handling mentions retries with exponential backoff, but batch operations (batch_gene_lookup.py) lack explicit validation/verification checkpoints; per the rubric, missing validation in batch operations caps this at 2. Not a 1 because sequencing is clear; not a 3 because no validate→fix→retry feedback loop is specified.	2 / 3
Progressive Disclosure	Keeps API detail out of the body and points to well-signaled, one-level-deep references (`references/api_reference.md`, `references/common_workflows.md`) and bundled scripts, matching the score-3 anchor. Note: the referenced scripts/ and references/ directories are absent from the bundle, so the links could not be verified as real files.	3 / 3
	Total	10 / 12 Passed

Description

67%

Based on the skill's description, can an agent find and select it at the right time? Clear, specific descriptions lead to better discovery.

The description is specific and distinct but lacks an explicit 'Use when...' trigger clause and leans on API jargon over natural user phrasing. Adding trigger guidance and user-facing terms would raise completeness and trigger-term quality.

Suggestions

Add an explicit trigger clause, e.g. 'Use when looking up genes by symbol or ID, retrieving RefSeq/GO/phenotype data, or batch-annotating gene lists.'

Lead with natural user terms ('search genes, look up gene info') rather than API names ('E-utilities/Datasets API') to improve trigger-term coverage.

Include common phrasings users would actually say, such as 'gene lookup', 'gene sequence', or 'find a gene'.

Dimension	Reasoning	Score
Specificity	Lists multiple concrete actions — 'Search by symbol/ID', 'retrieve gene info (RefSeqs, GO, locations, phenotypes)', 'batch lookups' — matching the score-3 anchor of several specific concrete actions.	3 / 3
Completeness	Clearly states what the skill does, but 'for gene annotation and functional analysis' is a purpose phrase, not an explicit 'Use when...' trigger, so per the rubric completeness is capped at 2. Not a 1 because the 'what' is well covered; not a 3 because explicit trigger guidance is absent.	2 / 3
Trigger Term Quality	Contains natural terms like 'gene symbol/ID', 'batch lookups', and 'gene annotation', but opens with technical jargon ('E-utilities/Datasets API') a user would not naturally say and lacks common variations like 'look up a gene'. Not a 3 because coverage of natural phrasings is incomplete; not a 1 because several relevant user-facing keywords are present.	2 / 3
Distinctiveness Conflict Risk	Scoped specifically to 'NCBI Gene' with concrete data types, giving it a clear niche unlikely to trigger for unrelated skills. Not lower because it is neither generic nor broadly overlapping.	3 / 3
	Total	10 / 12 Passed

Validation

87%

Warnings & errors only

Checks the skill against the spec for correct structure and formatting. All validation checks must pass before discovery and implementation can be scored.

Validation — 14 / 16 Passed

Validation for skill structure

Criteria	Description	Result
metadata_version	'metadata.version' is missing	Warning
referenced_paths_exist	Referenced path issues: 14 missing	Warning

	Total	14 / 16 Passed

Repository: wu-yc/LabClaw
Path: skills/bio/gene-database/SKILL.md
Commit: df37802

Reviewed: about 1 hour ago

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