MECC: Murine Estrous Cycle Classifier

MECC Interface: Shows a loaded estrous cytology image where users can click to select the correct cycle phase (Proestrus, Estrus, Metestrus, or Diestrus) and easily navigate to the next image.

Classifying high volumes of vaginal cytology images manually can be a major bottleneck for behavioral research. To streamline this workflow, the Bobadilla team developed MECC (Murine Estrous Cycle Classifier), a custom software application designed to make image annotation faster, more intuitive, and highly standardized. By centralizing the classification of estrous stages (Proestrus, Estrus, Metestrus, and Diestrus) into a clean interface, MECC significantly reduces the time required to process daily smears while maintaining rigorous data consistency across cohorts. The tool is currently active in our lab workflows and is available for sharing and implementation in other research settings.