Agent skill

Ectd XML Compiler

by aipoch in aipoch/medical-research-skills

Automatically convert uploaded drug application documents (Word/PDF) into XML skeleton structure compliant with eCTD 4.0/3.2.2 specifications.

MITAuto-check passedDocuments & Office

Install Ectd XML Compiler

skills CLI
$ npx skills add aipoch/medical-research-skills --skill ectd-xml-compiler -a claude-code

Project install by default; add -g for ~/.claude/skills/.

GitHub CLI
$ gh skill install aipoch/medical-research-skills ectd-xml-compiler --agent claude-code

Project scope by default; add --scope user for a personal install. Needs GitHub CLI 2.90.0 or later (public preview).

Manual copy
$ git clone --depth 1 https://github.com/aipoch/medical-research-skills.git skills-src && mkdir -p .claude/skills && cp -r skills-src/'scientific-skills/Academic Writing/ectd-xml-compiler' .claude/skills/ectd-xml-compiler && rm -rf skills-src

Use ~/.claude/skills/ instead of .claude/skills for a personal install. The folder must contain SKILL.md.

Claude Code skills documentation · loads skills from .claude/skills/

Facts

Skill name
ectd-xml-compiler
GitHub stars
2k
Token cost
~2.7k tokens
SKILL.md length
1,067 words
Files
5 (incl. scripts, references)
Skills in repo
567
Repo updated
First seen
Licence
MIT

At a glance

Automatically convert uploaded drug application documents (Word/PDF) into XML skeleton structure compliant with eCTD 4.0/3.2.2 specifications.

  • Works in 4 steps: Confirm the user input, output path, and… → Edit the in-file CONFIG block or… → Run python scripts/main.py with the… → …
  • Tasks that involve PDF
  • SKILL.md covers When to Use, Key Features, Dependencies and Example Usage, plus 16 more sections
  • Runs Python scripts from its folder; calls python

What it does

Ectd XML Compiler is an agent skill from aipoch/medical-research-skills. Automatically convert uploaded drug application documents (Word/PDF) into XML skeleton structure compliant with eCTD 4.0/3.2.2 specifications.

Its SKILL.md is about 2.7k tokens, which your agent loads only when the skill is triggered. The skill folder holds 6 other files, including scripts and reference files (for example `ectd-xml-compiler_audit_result_v2.json`, `references/audit-reference.md` and `scripts/main.py`).

It sits in Documents & Office, covering PDF. The repository describes itself as: Hundreds of agent skills for medical research, including protocol design, data analysis, evidence insights, and academic writing. The licence is MIT.

When your agent uses it

  • Tasks that involve PDF

Example prompts

  • “/ectd-xml-compiler”

Requirements

  • Python 3

Workflow steps

4 steps, taken from the first numbered list in SKILL.md.

  1. Confirm the user input, output path, and any required config values.
  2. Edit the in-file CONFIG block or documented parameters if the script uses fixed settings.
  3. Run python scripts/main.py with the validated inputs.
  4. Review the generated output and return the final artifact with any assumptions called out.

What it can do on your machine

Read from SKILL.md and the folder at commit 686e09d. It shows what the files ask for, not the result of running them.

  • Tool permissions

    Pre-approves nothing: there is no allowed-tools line, so your agent's usual permission prompts apply.

    From allowed-tools in the SKILL.md frontmatter.

  • Runs code

    Ships 1 file in scripts/ (Python), which the agent can run.

    Shell commands in SKILL.md call:

    • python

    From the folder's file list and the shell code blocks in SKILL.md.

  • Network

    Links to these hosts (documentation or services it may open):

    • ich.org
    • fda.gov
    • ema.europa.eu

    From URLs in SKILL.md, links to its own repository left out.

  • Credentials

    Names no API keys, tokens, secrets or passwords.

    From names ending in _API_KEY, _TOKEN, _SECRET, _KEY or _PASSWORD in SKILL.md.

Context cost

Ectd XML Compiler loads about 2.7k tokens when it runs, and up to ~2.9k if it reads all its reference files. Until then it costs about 40 tokens; SKILL.md has 1,067 words of instructions outside code blocks.

Always · name and description, kept in context so the agent knows when to use it
~40
When it runs · the whole SKILL.md, loaded when a task matches
~2.7k
With references · SKILL.md plus every file in references/, read only if the agent opens them
~2.9k

Estimates: characters ÷ 4, the usual rule of thumb; real counts depend on the model's tokenizer. Scripts and assets cost tokens only if the agent reads them.

Safety

Auto-check passed

The automated check found no risky patterns in SKILL.md.

Automated static check — not a guarantee. Review scripts before installing. It scans the text of SKILL.md for risky patterns (piping downloads into a shell, reading credential files, hidden Unicode, destructive commands); the scripts in this folder are not scanned.

SKILL.md

The full file from aipoch/medical-research-skills at commit 686e09d, republished under its MIT licence (© aipoch). 1,067 words, ~2,717 tokens.

Download SKILL.mdSave it as .claude/skills/ectd-xml-compiler/SKILL.md (or your agent's skills folder). This skill also uses 4 other files; get the full folder from GitHub.
name
ectd-xml-compiler
description
Automatically convert uploaded drug application documents (Word/PDF) into XML skeleton structure compliant with eCTD 4.0/3.2.2 specifications.
license
MIT
author
AIPOCH

Source: https://github.com/aipoch/medical-research-skills

eCTD XML Compiler

ID: 197

Automatically convert uploaded drug application documents (Word/PDF) into XML skeleton structure compliant with eCTD 4.0/3.2.2 specifications.

When to Use

  • Use this skill when the task needs Automatically convert uploaded drug application documents (Word/PDF) into XML skeleton structure compliant with eCTD 4.0/3.2.2 specifications.
  • Use this skill for academic writing tasks that require explicit assumptions, bounded scope, and a reproducible output format.
  • Use this skill when you need a documented fallback path for missing inputs, execution errors, or partial evidence.

Key Features

  • Scope-focused workflow aligned to: Automatically convert uploaded drug application documents (Word/PDF) into XML skeleton structure compliant with eCTD 4.0/3.2.2 specifications.
  • Packaged executable path(s): scripts/main.py.
  • Reference material available in references/ for task-specific guidance.
  • Structured execution path designed to keep outputs consistent and reviewable.

Dependencies

python-docx>=0.8.11    # Word document parsing
PyPDF2>=3.0.0          # PDF text extraction
lxml>=4.9.0            # XML processing

Example Usage

See ## Usage above for related details.

bash
cd "20260318/scientific-skills/Academic Writing/ectd-xml-compiler"
python -m py_compile scripts/main.py
python scripts/main.py --help

Example run plan:

  1. Confirm the user input, output path, and any required config values.
  2. Edit the in-file CONFIG block or documented parameters if the script uses fixed settings.
  3. Run python scripts/main.py with the validated inputs.
  4. Review the generated output and return the final artifact with any assumptions called out.

Implementation Details

See ## Workflow above for related details.

  • Execution model: validate the request, choose the packaged workflow, and produce a bounded deliverable.
  • Input controls: confirm the source files, scope limits, output format, and acceptance criteria before running any script.
  • Primary implementation surface: scripts/main.py.
  • Reference guidance: references/ contains supporting rules, prompts, or checklists.
  • Parameters to clarify first: input path, output path, scope filters, thresholds, and any domain-specific constraints.
  • Output discipline: keep results reproducible, identify assumptions explicitly, and avoid undocumented side effects.

Quick Check

Use this command to verify that the packaged script entry point can be parsed before deeper execution.

bash
python -m py_compile scripts/main.py

Audit-Ready Commands

Use these concrete commands for validation. They are intentionally self-contained and avoid placeholder paths.

bash
python -m py_compile scripts/main.py
python scripts/main.py --help

Workflow

  1. Confirm the user objective, required inputs, and non-negotiable constraints before doing detailed work.
  2. Validate that the request matches the documented scope and stop early if the task would require unsupported assumptions.
  3. Use the packaged script path or the documented reasoning path with only the inputs that are actually available.
  4. Return a structured result that separates assumptions, deliverables, risks, and unresolved items.
  5. If execution fails or inputs are incomplete, switch to the fallback path and state exactly what blocked full completion.

Overview

eCTD (electronic Common Technical Document) is the electronic Common Technical Document standard established by ICH for submitting drug registration applications to regulatory agencies such as FDA and EMA.

This tool parses uploaded drug application documents (Word/PDF) and converts them into XML skeleton structure compliant with eCTD 4.0/3.2.2 specifications.

eCTD Structure

eCTD/
├── m1/  # Module 1: Administrative Information and Prescribing Information (region-specific)
│   ├── m1.xml
│   └── ...
├── m2/  # Module 2: CTD Summaries
│   ├── m2.xml
│   └── ...
├── m3/  # Module 3: Quality
│   ├── m3.xml
│   └── ...
├── m4/  # Module 4: Nonclinical Study Reports
│   ├── m4.xml
│   └── ...
├── m5/  # Module 5: Clinical Study Reports
│   ├── m5.xml
│   └── ...
├── index.xml      # Master index file
├── index-md5.txt  # MD5 checksum file
└── dtd/           # DTD files

Usage

text
python skills/ectd-xml-compiler/scripts/main.py [options] <input_files...>
Arguments
ArgumentDescription
input_filesInput Word/PDF file paths (supports multiple)
Options
OptionShortDescriptionDefault
--output-oOutput directory path./ectd-output
--module-mTarget module (m1-m5, auto)auto
--region-rTarget region (FDA, EMA, ICH)ICH
--version-veCTD version (3.2.2, 4.0)4.0
--dtd-path-dCustom DTD pathBuilt-in DTD
--validateValidate generated XMLFalse
Examples
text

# Basic usage - auto-detect module
python skills/ectd-xml-compiler/scripts/main.py document1.docx document2.pdf

# Specify output directory and module
python skills/ectd-xml-compiler/scripts/main.py -o ./my-ectd -m m3 quality-doc.docx

# FDA submission format
python skills/ectd-xml-compiler/scripts/main.py -r FDA -v 3.2.2 *.pdf

# Validate generated XML
python skills/ectd-xml-compiler/scripts/main.py --validate submission.pdf

Input Document Processing

Supported Formats
  • Microsoft Word (.docx, .doc)
  • PDF (.pdf)
Document Parsing Logic
  1. Title Recognition: Extract heading hierarchy based on font size and style
  2. TOC Mapping: Auto-recognize section numbers (e.g., 3.2.S.1.1)
  3. Metadata Extraction: Extract author, date, version, and other information
  4. Content Classification: Map to corresponding eCTD modules based on keyword matching
Module Auto-Recognition Rules
Keyword PatternTarget Module
Administrative, Label, Package Insertm1
Summary, summary, Overviewm2
Quality, quality, CMC, API, Drug Productm3
Nonclinical, Toxicology, Pharmacokineticsm4
Clinical, clinical, Study, Trialm5

Output Structure

Generated eCTD skeleton contains:

index.xml

Master index file containing references and sequence information for all modules.

Module XML (m1.xml - m5.xml)

XML skeleton for each module, containing:

  • Document hierarchy structure (<leaf>, <node>)
  • Cross-references (<cross-reference>)
  • Attribute definitions (ID, version, operation type)
MD5 Checksums

MD5 checksum values for each file to ensure integrity.

Show full SKILL.md (427 more words)Show less

Installation

text

# Install dependencies
pip install python-docx PyPDF2 lxml

Validation

Using --validate option can validate generated XML:

  • DTD structure validation
  • Required elements and attributes check
  • Cross-reference integrity check

References

License

MIT License

Risk Assessment

Risk IndicatorAssessmentLevel
Code ExecutionPython/R scripts executed locallyMedium
Network AccessNo external API callsLow
File System AccessRead input files, write output filesMedium
Instruction TamperingStandard prompt guidelinesLow
Data ExposureOutput files saved to workspaceLow

Security Checklist

  • No hardcoded credentials or API keys
  • No unauthorized file system access (../)
  • Output does not expose sensitive information
  • Prompt injection protections in place
  • Input file paths validated (no ../ traversal)
  • Output directory restricted to workspace
  • Script execution in sandboxed environment
  • Error messages sanitized (no stack traces exposed)
  • Dependencies audited

Prerequisites

No additional Python packages required.

Evaluation Criteria

Success Metrics
  • Successfully executes main functionality
  • Output meets quality standards
  • Handles edge cases gracefully
  • Performance is acceptable
Test Cases
  1. Basic Functionality: Standard input → Expected output
  2. Edge Case: Invalid input → Graceful error handling
  3. Performance: Large dataset → Acceptable processing time

Lifecycle Status

  • Current Stage: Draft
  • Next Review Date: 2026-03-06
  • Known Issues: None
  • Planned Improvements:
    • Performance optimization
    • Additional feature support

Output Requirements

Every final response should make these items explicit when they are relevant:

  • Objective or requested deliverable
  • Inputs used and assumptions introduced
  • Workflow or decision path
  • Core result, recommendation, or artifact
  • Constraints, risks, caveats, or validation needs
  • Unresolved items and next-step checks

Error Handling

  • If required inputs are missing, state exactly which fields are missing and request only the minimum additional information.
  • If the task goes outside the documented scope, stop instead of guessing or silently widening the assignment.
  • If scripts/main.py fails, report the failure point, summarize what still can be completed safely, and provide a manual fallback.
  • Do not fabricate files, citations, data, search results, or execution outcomes.

Input Validation

This skill accepts requests that match the documented purpose of ectd-xml-compiler and include enough context to complete the workflow safely.

Do not continue the workflow when the request is out of scope, missing a critical input, or would require unsupported assumptions. Instead respond:

ectd-xml-compiler only handles its documented workflow. Please provide the missing required inputs or switch to a more suitable skill.

References

Response Template

Use the following fixed structure for non-trivial requests:

  1. Objective
  2. Inputs Received
  3. Assumptions
  4. Workflow
  5. Deliverable
  6. Risks and Limits
  7. Next Checks

If the request is simple, you may compress the structure, but still keep assumptions and limits explicit when they affect correctness.

© aipoch, MIT. Rendered from Markdown: HTML in the file is shown as text, images as links, and headings moved down two levels. Raw file

Files

SKILL.md and 4 other files (scripts, references) in scientific-skills/Academic Writing/ectd-xml-compiler of aipoch/medical-research-skills.

  • SKILL.md
  • ectd-xml-compiler_audit_result_v2.json
  • references/audit-reference.md
  • requirements.txt
  • scripts/main.py

Open the folder on GitHubat commit 686e09d

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Questions about Ectd XML Compiler

What does Ectd XML Compiler do?

Automatically convert uploaded drug application documents (Word/PDF) into XML skeleton structure compliant with eCTD 4.0/3.2.2 specifications. Ectd XML Compiler is an agent skill from aipoch/medical-research-skills.2 specifications.

When should I use Ectd XML Compiler?

Ectd XML Compiler fits situations like: tasks that involve PDF.

How do I install Ectd XML Compiler in Claude Code?

Run `npx skills add aipoch/medical-research-skills --skill ectd-xml-compiler -a claude-code`. Or copy the skill folder (scientific-skills/Academic Writing/ectd-xml-compiler in aipoch/medical-research-skills) into .claude/skills/ectd-xml-compiler in your project. Claude Code loads it when a task matches its description.

How do I install Ectd XML Compiler in Codex?

Run `npx skills add aipoch/medical-research-skills --skill ectd-xml-compiler -a codex`. Or copy the skill folder (scientific-skills/Academic Writing/ectd-xml-compiler in aipoch/medical-research-skills) into .agents/skills/ectd-xml-compiler in your project. Codex loads it when a task matches its description.

Can I use Ectd XML Compiler in Cursor, Gemini CLI or GitHub Copilot?

Cursor, Gemini CLI, GitHub Copilot and OpenCode also load SKILL.md folders. With the skills CLI, run `npx skills add aipoch/medical-research-skills --skill ectd-xml-compiler -a cursor` (or -a gemini-cli, github-copilot or opencode for the others). To copy it by hand, put the folder in .cursor/skills/ectd-xml-compiler, .gemini/skills/ectd-xml-compiler, .github/skills/ectd-xml-compiler and .opencode/skills/ectd-xml-compiler in your project.

What does Ectd XML Compiler need to run?

Going by SKILL.md and its folder, Ectd XML Compiler needs Python for the scripts in its folder and the command-line tools its instructions call (python). Our summary lists: Python 3.

Does Ectd XML Compiler access the network?

SKILL.md names 3 domains. As links in the text: ich.org, fda.gov and ema.europa.eu. This is read from the text; nothing was executed.

Is Ectd XML Compiler safe to install?

Our automated static check of SKILL.md found no risky patterns, such as piping downloads into a shell, reading credential files or hidden Unicode. It is not a guarantee. The check reads SKILL.md only: the scripts in the folder are not scanned, so read them before running anything.

What licence does Ectd XML Compiler use?

Ectd XML Compiler is published under the MIT licence (declared in SKILL.md). It allows redistribution, so the full SKILL.md is shown on this page.

How many tokens does Ectd XML Compiler use?

About 2.7k tokens (SKILL.md is roughly 11k characters). Agents keep only the skill's name and description in context until a task matches; then they load SKILL.md in full. Its references folder adds about 176 tokens, read only when the agent opens those files.

What are the alternatives to Ectd XML Compiler?

Skills that share tags, products or a category with Ectd XML Compiler: Markitdown (ImCa0/just-laws, 781 stars), Gzh Design (isjiamu/gzh-design-skill, 3.9k stars), GenOffice Document CLI (genspark-ai/genoffice, 8.9k stars) and Harness Book Best Practice (wquguru/harness-books, 3.2k stars). The comparison table on this page puts their stars, adoption, token cost, safety result and licence side by side.

Who maintains Ectd XML Compiler?

aipoch (a GitHub organization) maintains it in aipoch/medical-research-skills, which has 1,974 GitHub stars. The repository holds 567 skills in this directory. The repository was last updated on September 17, 2026.

Source: aipoch/medical-research-skills on GitHub. Facts on this page come from the repository at the commit we read; the author's words are quoted as theirs.