Distinguishability of biological material by use of ultraviolet multispectral fluorescence

Recent interest in the detection and analysis of biological samples by spectroscopic methods has led to questions concerning the degree of distinguishability and biological variability of the UV fluorescent spectra from such complex samples. We show that the degree of distinguishability of such spectra is readily determined numerically. As a practical example of this technique, we show its application to the analysis of UV fluorescence spectra taken of E. coli, S. aureus, and S. typhimurium. The use of this analysis to determine the degree of biological variability and also to verify that measurements are being made in a linear regime in which analytic methods such as multivariate analysis are valid is discussed.