RNAget: An API for retrieving processed RNA-derived measurements

The RNAget API describes a common set of endpoints for search and retrieval of processed RNA data such as feature level expression data from RNA-Seq type assays and signal data over a range of bases from ChIP-seq, methylation or similar epigenetic experiments.  By using these common endpoints, data providers make it easier for client software to access their data with no to minimal modifications to underlying code. This improves interoperability with other compliant data providers and makes it easier for investigators to retrieve and compare data from multiple sites.  For the software developer, these common endpoints and patterns make it easier to access multiple compliant server sites with the same client software, saving development time which may otherwise have been spent writing custom parsers and request generators. With the RNAget API it becomes much easier to write software to conduct comparisons, data mingling or other analyses on data retrieved from multiple, potentially geographically dispersed data servers.