Region Evolution eXplorer: a tool for discovering evolution trends in ontology regions

Background: A large number of life science ontologies has been developed to support different application scenarios such as gene annotation or functional analysis. The continuous accumulation of new insights and knowledge affects specific portions in ontologies and thus leads to their adaptation. Therefore, it is valuable to study which ontology parts have been extensively modified or remained unchanged. Users can monitor the evolution of an ontology to improve its further development or apply the knowledge in their applications.