Self Adjusting Algorithm for the Nontargeted Feature Detection of High Resolution Mass Spectrometry Coupled with Liquid Chromatography Profile Data

Nontargeted feature detection in data from high resolution mass spectrometry is a challenging task, due to the complex and noisy nature of data sets. Numerous feature detection and preprocessing strategies have been developed in an attempt to tackle this challenge, but recent evidence has indicated limitations in the currently used methods. Recent studies have indicated the limitations of the currently used methods for feature detection of LC-HRMS data. To overcome these limitations, we propose a self-adjusting feature detection (SAFD) algorithm for the processing of profile data from LC-HRMS. SAFD fits a three-dimensional Gaussian into the profile data of a feature, without data preprocessing (i.e., centroiding and/or binning). We tested SAFD on 55 LC-HRMS chromatograms from which 44 were composite wastewater influent samples. Additionally, 51 of 55 samples were spiked with 19 labeled internal standards. We further validated SAFD by comparing its results with those produced via XCMS implemented through MZmine. In terms of ISs and the unknown features, SAFD produced lower rates of false detection (i.e., ≤ 5% and ≤10%, respectively) when compared to XCMS (≤11% and ≤28%, respectively). We also observed higher reproducibility in the feature area generated by SAFD algorithm versus XCMS.