Defining Spectral Quality in Mass Spectrometry-Based Proteomics: A Retrospective Review

Mass spectrometry-based proteomics is essential for advancing preventive and personalised medicine. Technological advancements have greatly increased both the number and sensitivity of spectra generated in a single experiment. Traditionally, spectra are identified using database search engines that depend on large and continuously expanding databases. This expansion enlarges the search space, posing challenges for controlling the false discovery rate in peptide identification. While many bioinformatic workflows employ rescoring algorithms as a post-processing step to manage false discoveries, preprocessing spectra offers a promising alternative. One such method, spectral quality assessment, classifies spectra as "high" quality (likely containing a peptide) or "low" quality (predominantly consisting of noise). This review provides a comprehensive perspective on spectral quality assessment, examining existing tools and their underlying principles. We discuss key considerations such as the definition of spectral quality, normalisation, the use of experimental training data, and future research in the field. By highlighting the potential of spectral quality assessment to improve peptide identification and reduce false discoveries, we aim to elaborate on its potential for the proteomics community.