Quick Topic Researcher

5 minutes to topic mastery. This skill generates a focused research brief you can use immediately before recording a video or writing content.

Different from deep-researcher : That skill is comprehensive (5+ sources, file-based, 30+ minutes). This skill is FAST (5 questions, parallel search, 5 minutes).

When to Use

Use Case This Skill

Prepping for a YouTube video Yes

Writing a quick tweet thread Yes

Refreshing knowledge on a topic Yes

Before a podcast discussion Yes

Comprehensive literature review No → Use deep-researcher

Writing a formal editorial No → Use deep-researcher first

How It Works

TOPIC: "GLP-1 agonists in heart failure" DOMAIN: "Cardiology"

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┌─────────────────────────────────────────────────────┐ │ STEP 1: Generate 5 Research Questions │ │ │ │ 1. Do GLP-1 agonists reduce heart failure │ │ hospitalization in diabetic patients? │ │ 2. Is there evidence of direct cardiac benefit? │ │ 3. What are the key trials showing CV outcomes? │ │ 4. Are there safety concerns in existing HF? │ │ 5. What do current guidelines recommend? │ └─────────────────────────────────────────────────────┘ │ ▼ ┌─────────────────────────────────────────────────────┐ │ STEP 2: Parallel Research (5 searches at once) │ │ │ │ [PubMed Q1] [PubMed Q2] [PubMed Q3] [Perplexity Q4] │ │ [Perplexity Q5] │ │ │ │ ~30 seconds total │ └─────────────────────────────────────────────────────┘ │ ▼ ┌─────────────────────────────────────────────────────┐ │ STEP 3: McKinsey-Style Brief │ │ │ │ EXECUTIVE SUMMARY │ │ • Key finding with strongest PMID │ │ │ │ ANALYSIS │ │ • Theme 1: Trial evidence (PMIDs) │ │ • Theme 2: Mechanisms (PMIDs) │ │ • Theme 3: Guidelines │ │ │ │ CLINICAL IMPLICATIONS │ │ • What this means for your content │ │ │ │ KEY PMIDS TO CITE │ │ • List of 5-7 citation-ready references │ └─────────────────────────────────────────────────────┘

Usage

Interactive Mode (Recommended)

Ask Claude:

Use quick-topic-researcher for [TOPIC] in [DOMAIN]

Example:

Use quick-topic-researcher for "SGLT2 inhibitors in CKD" in "Cardiology/Nephrology"

CLI Mode (Coming Soon)

python skills/cardiology/quick-topic-researcher/scripts/quick_research.py
--topic "GLP-1 agonists in heart failure"
--domain "Cardiology"

Research Sources

Primary (Citable)

Source Tool Purpose

PubMed MCP pubmed_search_articles , pubmed_fetch_contents

All medical evidence

Guidelines Direct URL fetch to ACC/ESC/ADA Recommendations

Discovery (Not Citable)

Source Tool Purpose

Perplexity perplexity_ask via MCP Quick context, trend discovery

Web Search WebSearch

Background, non-medical context

Rule: You can USE Perplexity to understand context, but you CITE only PubMed.

Output Format

The skill outputs a structured brief:

Quick Research Brief: [TOPIC]

Domain: [DOMAIN] Generated: [DATE] Time to Read: 3 minutes

Executive Summary

[2-3 sentences: What you need to know before recording/writing]

Key takeaway: [ONE sentence with strongest PMID]

Research Questions & Findings

Q1: [Question]

Answer: [Concise answer] Evidence: [Study name, PMID, key stat (HR, CI, p-value)]

Q2: [Question]

Answer: [Concise answer] Evidence: [Study name, PMID, key stat]

[... Q3-Q5 ...]

Clinical Context

What Guidelines Say

[ACC/ESC/ADA recommendations with class/level]

Practice Implications

[What this means for real patients]

Content Hooks

For your video/content, consider these angles:

1. [Hook 1 based on findings]
2. [Hook 2 based on findings]
3. [Hook 3 based on findings]

Citation-Ready References

1. Author A, et al. TRIAL-NAME. Journal. Year. PMID: XXXXXXXX
2. Author B, et al. Study Name. Journal. Year. PMID: XXXXXXXX
3. [5-7 total references]

Gaps & Caveats

• [What the evidence doesn't cover]
• [Patient populations with limited data]

Integration with Content Pipeline

Before YouTube Script

1. Run quick-topic-researcher on your video topic
2. Review the brief (3 min read)
3. Open youtube-script-master with the brief in context
4. Script now has verified facts and PMIDs

Before Tweet Thread

1. Run quick-topic-researcher
2. Pick 1-2 key findings from the brief
3. Use x-post-creator-skill with specific PMIDs

Before Newsletter

1. Run quick-topic-researcher for quick take
2. If topic is complex, follow up with deep-researcher
3. Write with cardiology-newsletter-writer

Example Session

User: Use quick-topic-researcher for "colchicine in cardiovascular prevention" in "Cardiology"

Claude:

I'll research this topic rapidly using PubMed and generate a brief.

Step 1: Generating 5 research questions...

• Does colchicine reduce major cardiovascular events in CAD patients?

• What are the key RCTs (COLCOT, LoDoCo2, CLEAR SYNERGY)?

• What is the proposed anti-inflammatory mechanism?

• What are the safety concerns and contraindications?

• What do current guidelines recommend?

Step 2: Parallel research...

[Executes 5 PubMed searches in parallel] [Fetches key article abstracts] [Searches Perplexity for context]

Step 3: Generating McKinsey-style brief...

Quick Research Brief: Colchicine in CV Prevention

Domain: Cardiology Generated: 2026-01-01 Time to Read: 3 minutes

Executive Summary

Low-dose colchicine (0.5mg daily) reduces cardiovascular events in patients with established coronary artery disease through anti-inflammatory mechanisms. COLCOT and LoDoCo2 showed consistent benefit; CLEAR SYNERGY was neutral but in a different population.

Key takeaway: In stable CAD patients, colchicine 0.5mg daily reduces CV events by ~25% (HR 0.69-0.77) (PMID: 31733140, 32865377)

Research Questions & Findings

Q1: Does colchicine reduce major CV events?

Answer: Yes, in stable CAD Evidence: LoDoCo2: HR 0.69 (0.57-0.83), p<0.001 for CV death/MI/stroke (PMID: 32865377)

Q2: What are the key trials?

Answer: COLCOT (post-MI), LoDoCo2 (chronic CAD), CLEAR SYNERGY (post-PCI) Evidence:

• COLCOT: 0.5mg, HR 0.77 for composite (PMID: 31733140)

• LoDoCo2: 0.5mg, HR 0.69 for composite (PMID: 32865377)

• CLEAR SYNERGY: Neutral for primary endpoint (PMID: 37634428)

Q3: What is the mechanism?

Answer: NLRP3 inflammasome inhibition, IL-1β reduction Evidence: Reduces hsCRP; targets residual inflammatory risk (PMID: 29724838)

Q4: Safety concerns?

Answer: GI side effects, myopathy with statins, CKD dose adjustment Evidence: NNH for GI: ~50; avoid with strong CYP3A4 inhibitors (PMID: 31733140)

Q5: Guidelines?

Answer: Class IIb in ESC 2024 for chronic CAD Evidence: ESC 2024 CCS Guidelines, consider in patients with elevated hsCRP

Clinical Context

What Guidelines Say

ESC 2024: Class IIb, Level A - "Colchicine 0.5mg may be considered to reduce CV risk in chronic coronary syndrome"

Practice Implications

• Best candidates: Stable CAD with elevated hsCRP despite optimal therapy

• Less certain: Immediately post-MI (COLCOT positive, but smaller effect)

• Probably not: Post-PCI without other CAD (CLEAR SYNERGY neutral)

Content Hooks

• "The inflammation hypothesis finally has a drug - and it's ancient"

• "0.5mg for 50 cents - the cheapest CV prevention we've ignored"

• "Why the cardiologist's gout drug became a heart drug"

Citation-Ready References

• Tardif JC, et al. COLCOT. NEJM. 2019. PMID: 31733140

• Nidorf SM, et al. LoDoCo2. NEJM. 2020. PMID: 32865377

• Jolly SS, et al. CLEAR SYNERGY. NEJM. 2024. PMID: 37634428

• Ridker PM. Residual inflammatory risk. JACC. 2018. PMID: 29724838

• ESC CCS Guidelines 2024

Gaps & Caveats

• No RCT in primary prevention (only secondary prevention studied)

• Unclear benefit in patients with normal hsCRP

• Long-term safety (>3 years) data limited

• CLEAR SYNERGY challenges universal applicability

Ready for your video! You now have verified facts, PMIDs, and content hooks.

Comparison with Other Skills

Skill Time Depth Use Case

quick-topic-researcher 5 min Surface + key trials Video prep, quick refresh

deep-researcher

30-60 min Comprehensive Editorials, literature review

pubmed-database

2 min Single search Specific question

perplexity-search

1 min Trend only Discovery, non-citable

Technical Implementation

Dependencies

• PubMed MCP (existing)

• Perplexity MCP (existing)

• Claude (default model)

Parallel Execution

The skill uses Claude's ability to make multiple tool calls simultaneously:

These run in parallel (single message, multiple tool calls)

pubmed_search_articles(queryTerm="colchicine cardiovascular RCT", maxResults=10) pubmed_search_articles(queryTerm="colchicine mechanism inflammation", maxResults=5) perplexity_ask(messages=[{"role": "user", "content": "colchicine cardiology guidelines 2024"}])

Output

• Markdown brief (displayed in terminal)

• Optional: Save to ~/research_briefs/{topic}_{date}.md

This skill gets you from "I need to know about X" to "I can confidently speak about X" in 5 minutes.