Effect of growth media and washing on the spectral signatures of aerosolized biological simulants.

We have evaluated the influence of growth media and washing on the laser-induced fluorescence spectra of bacteria. Three different bacterial simulants were cultured in three types of growth media. Three kinds of samples were generated from each culture: the culture itself, the growth medium alone, and a triple-washed sample. The materials were injected as aerosols in a lab-sized lidar aerosol chamber to obtain their spectra. Using two different analysis approaches, signature variations were observed between the three kinds of samples for most combinations of growth media/bacteria. This study concludes that the culture media used influences the spectral signatures.