Latest publication from MSREC

Mar. 18, 2026

A new study from the UF Chemistry Mass Spectrometry Research and Education Center (MSREC) finds that the sulfo-phospho-vanillin assay (SPVA) provides more accurate sample normalization for lipidomics than protein or gravimetric methods, reducing false positives and improving identification of biologically meaningful lipid changes. Drs. Laura Bailey and Kari Basso, the Director of the MSREC, were authors on the study.

Sample normalization is essential for lipid quantitation. While normalization methods involving pre- or post-gravimetric measurements, counting, or protein pre-quantitation exist, a single, common sample normalization method is not widely accepted. Previously, we proposed and evaluated the sulfo-phospho-vanillin assay (SPVA), a total lipid quantitation reaction, for pre-quantifying total lipids for LC-MS/MS sample normalization purposes. This current investigation furthers our evaluation of the SPVA as a sample normalization method in untargeted lipidomic LC-MS/MS by comparing SPVA total lipid pre-quantitation to protein pre-quantitation, and gravimetric measurements. These results suggest neither gravimetric nor protein sample normalization appropriately normalizes quantitative lipidomic experiments and greatly over-generates statistically significant lipid features for biomarker investigation. SPVA normalization more accurately adjusts for lipid changes in bio-replicate samples, leading to fewer but more biologically relevant statis-tically significant lipid features.