The growth of the field of lipidomic analysis is enormous with numerous papers published annually, as shown on the statistics from Web of Science for keywords “lipidomic(s)” and “mass spectrometry” (Fig. 1) with 2923 published papers, where over a hundred of them have been published in Analytical and Bioanalytical Chemistry. The detailed analysis of these papers shows the approximate relative portions for major analytical approaches in lipidomic analysis: 59% liquid chromatography, 29% shotgun (direct infusion), and 12% mass spectrometry imaging. The following authors have contributed the most frequently to this set: X.L. Han (99), G. Liebisch (52), P.J. Meikle (50), R.W. Gross (44), M. Oresic (44), and M.R. Wenk (44). We also highlight five most cited papers from this set [1,2,3,4,5].

Fig. 1
figure 1

The annual number of published papers for keywords “lipidomic(s)” and “mass spectrometry” according to the Web of Science search from December 15, 2019

Full size image

In 2015, Analytical and Bioanalytical Chemistry published a previous topical collection on lipidomics [6]. Lipidomic analysis is almost exclusively based on mass spectrometry (MS) analysis [7], starting from low-resolution analyzers (typical QqQ), now shifting more towards tandem mass analyzers with ultrahigh resolving power, e.g., Orbitraps. New trends are the implementation of ion mobility, dedicated approaches for the determination of double-bond positions, and ultrahigh-performance separation techniques to speed up the analysis time, such as ultrahigh-performance liquid chromatography and ultrahigh-performance supercritical fluid chromatography coupled with MS. Current challenges in the field of lipidomics include high variations in concentrations as well as misquantification and misidentifications [8]. Therefore, Lipidomics Standards Initiative (LSI) [9] was recently founded to develop guidelines for lipidomics. These efforts are aligned with other major initiatives in the field, such as Lipid MAPS [10]. Moreover, the International Lipidomic Society (ILS) [11] just started to represent and promote lipidomics through worldwide cooperation also by hosting various interest groups like LSI or the development of reference values for human plasma [12]. These activities are embedded in a series of conferences‚ providing space and time to engage with interest groups and discuss further developments.

This topical collection on Lipidomic Analysis includes research papers and one review from leading lipidomic groups worldwide, which represent latest advances in lipidomics and a variety of methods‚ such as shotgun, LC, and SFC coupled to low- and high-resolution mass spectrometry‚ in line with the current challenges. We express our gratitude to all authors for their excellent contributions, as well as the reviewers, and editorial office for their great efforts to compile this topical collection.