Non-parametric methods for mass spectromic relative quantification and analyte differential abundance detection

1. A method comprising:

loading a biological sample including analytes onto a high-performance liquid chromatography column;

separating one or more of the analytes in the high-performance liquid chromatography column to provide one or more separated analytes;

ionizing the one or more separated analytes with electrospray ionization to provide ions;

subjecting the ions to tandem mass spectrometry to produce first and second data distributions indicative of abundance of one or more of the analytes within the biological sample;

globally normalizing, with a computer, the first and second data distributions by normalizing proximal compositional proportionality of the abundance of the one or more analytes using a proximity-based intensity normalization, wherein the proximity-based intensity normalization comprises using the following formula:

i

jx

∑

j

=

1

n

x

⁢

⁢

i

jx

/

i

jy

∑

j

=

1

n

y

⁢

⁢

i

jy

 wherein:

i jx is the intensity of ion j in the first distribution x,

i jy is the intensity of ion j in the second distribution y,

n x is the number of surrogate ions in distribution x, and

n y is the number of surrogate ions in distribution y; and

determining, based on the globally normalized first and second data distributions, whether variance of the data points indicating abundance of one or more of the analytes between the first and second data distributions is due to biological variability or due to extraneous variability between the first and second data distributions comprising complex variability resulting from one or more transient stochastic events occurring during one or more of the loading step, the separating step, the ionizing step, and the subjecting step,

wherein the determining step comprises the computer using the proximity-based intensity normalization to mitigate bias resulting from the complex variability.

2. The method of claim 1 , wherein the method improves the ability to produce a consistent result in at least one of: a repeated measurement of a same biological sample using a same system and operator; and a repeated experiment where analytical technique remains the same.

3. The method of claim 1 , wherein the analytes comprises one or more polymers, the method further comprising analyzing the biological sample for quantitation of the one or more polymers.

4. The method of claim 3 , wherein the one or more polymers comprises at least one of deoxyribonucleic acid (DNA), ribonucleic acid (RNA), peptide nucleic acid (PNA), one or more proteins, one or more peptides, one or more carbohydrates, and modified forms thereof.

5. The method of claim 1 , wherein the analytes comprises a pharmaceutical compound, the method further comprising analyzing the biological sample for quantitation of the pharmaceutical compound.

6. The method of claim 1 , wherein the biological sample comprises at least one of blood and urine.

7. The method of claim 1 , further comprising computing, with the computer, a proportional ratio of the analytes between the first and second data distributions.

8. The method of claim 1 , further comprising reducing, with the computer, at least one of: a median standard deviation coefficient of variance quality metric and a median standard deviation pooled estimate of variance quality metric.

9. The method of claim 1 , wherein the extraneous variability between the first and second data distributions further comprises systemic bias; and

wherein the determining step comprises the computer using the proximity-based intensity normalization to mitigate bias resulting from the complex variability and from the systemic bias.

10. The method of claim 9 , wherein the systemic bias comprises one or more of bias resulting from instrument variability, bias resulting from sample preparation variability, bias resulting from sample handling variability, and bias resulting from loading amount variability, and wherein the determining step comprises the computer using the proximity-based intensity normalization to mitigate one or more of the bias resulting from instrument variability, the bias resulting from sample preparation variability, the bias resulting from sample handling variability, and the bias resulting from loading amount variability.

11. The method of claim 10 , wherein the instrument variability comprises variability due to a change in hardware or environment during one or more of the loading step, the separating step, and the ionizing step, and

wherein the determining step comprises the computer using the proximity-based intensity normalization to mitigate bias resulting from the variability due to the change in hardware or environment during one or more of the loading step, the separation step, the ionizing step, and the subjecting step.

12. The method claim 1 , further comprising, with the computer, increasing detection of true biological variability.

13. The method of claim 1 , wherein the method normalizes without overfitting.

14. The method of claim 1 , wherein the complex variability comprises one or both of mobile phase composition fluctuation during the ionizing step and flow rate fluctuation during the ionizing step, and

wherein the determining step comprises the computer using the proximity-based intensity normalization to mitigate one or both of bias resulting from the mobile phase composition fluctuation during the ionizing step and bias resulting from the flow rate fluctuation during the ionizing step.