CfP: Bio-Ontologies and Knowledge Representation COSI @ ISMB 2026

[Robert Hoehndorf]

Dear Bio-Ontologies and Knowledge Representation community,

Call for Submissions - Bio-Ontologies and Knowledge Representation
COSI @ ISMB 2026 in Washington DC (USA).

What: Annual Bio-Ontologies and Knowledge Representation COSI Meeting at ISMB
When: July 13-14, 2026
Where: Washington DC, USA
Website: https://www.bio-ontologies.org.uk/2026-meeting; https://www.iscb.org/ismb2026/home

The Bio-Ontologies and Knowledge Representation (BOKR) COSI (renamed
from the "Bio-Ontologies" COSI, http://www.bio-ontologies.org.uk/) is
an International Society for Computational Biology (ISCB) Community of
Special Interest (COSI) focused on research related to building and
using structured knowledge in bioinformatics. Topics include
ontologies, knowledge graphs, knowledge-enhanced learning, knowledge
extraction, and, in general, any aspect related to the organisation,
presentation, dissemination, and use of knowledge in biology,
biomedicine, and the life sciences. Bio-Ontologies and Knowledge
Representation (BOKR) continues the tradition of the Bio-Ontologies
COSI and will be in its 29th year at ISMB 2026
(https://www.iscb.org/ismb2026). ISMB 2026 will be held in-person
between July 12-16, 2026 and will feature two days of exciting
keynotes and cutting-edge research in the BOKR sessions. BOKR will
share one session on 14 July with the Bioinformatics Open Source
Conference (https://www.open-bio.org/events/bosc-2026/) and another
with the Function COSI (https://www.biofunctionprediction.org/).

Submissions
We invite the submissions of abstracts (1-2 pages) which will be
considered for oral and poster presentation in the BOKR track at ISMB.

BOKR covers research on any of these topics:

- New knowledge bases, knowledge graphs, and ontologies
- Methods that use knowledge bases, knowledge graphs, and ontologies
- Applications using knowledge bases, knowledge graphs, and ontologies
- Methods to build and improve knowledge bases, knowledge graphs, and
ontologies in bioinformatics, biomedical/life science research,
health informatics, and healthcare

Examples include (but are not limited to):

- Novel knowledge bases, knowledge graphs, and ontologies in bioinformatics
- Ontologies and knowledge graphs in annotations, mapping applications, and metadata standards
- FAIR data systems and application of ontologies and other linked open data
- Bio-curation platforms
- Evaluation of knowledge graphs, ontologies, and knowledge bases
- Ontologies, knowledge representation, and reasoning
- Machine learning/artificial intelligence and knowledge representation
- Neuro-symbolic methods in bioinformatics
- Semantic Web-enabled applications
- Ontologies for biomedical/life science research, health informatics, and healthcare

Submissions can be made on the ISMB site
(https://www.iscb.org/ismb2026) or directly through EasyChair at
https://easychair.org/conferences/?conf=ismb2026. For Abstract
submissions, we accept short (1 page) abstracts for consideration as
poster presentation, and long (2 page) abstracts for consideration as
oral presentation. All submissions will be reviewed, and based on the
review process, abstracts will be selected for oral or poster
presentation at the Bio-Ontologies and Knowledge Representation
COSI. Submissions to be considered for the joint BOSC / BOKR Day
should specify a license and URL if applicable, all other submissions
may optionally specify this information.

Accepted submissions require that one author register for the
conference and present the work. The presenter should identify
themselves as the corresponding author during the submission process.

Important Dates
Abstract submission
Monday, April 9, 2026 (11:59 PM EDT): Abstract Submission Deadline
Monday, April 13, 2026: Late Submissions Open (Poster presentation only)
Thursday, May 5, 2026: Talk and/or Poster Acceptance Notifications
Thursday, May 7, 2026 (11:59 PM EDT): Late Poster Submissions Deadline

If you have any questions please send us an email
(bioontolo...@googlegroups.com).


Sincerely,

The Bio-Ontologies and Knowledge Representation Organizing Committee
https://www.bio-ontologies.org.uk/