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Article

FTIR Spectroscopy of Vitreous Humor for Postmortem Interval Estimation: A Multivariate Regression Approach

by
Ioana Ruxandra Țurlea
1,2,
George Cristian Curca
1,2,
Maria Mernea
3,*,
Alina Cristina Mătanie
3,
Sergiu Fendrihan
4 and
Dan Florin Mihăilescu
3
1
Department of Legal Medicine and Bioethics, “Carol Davila” University of Medicine and Pharmacy, 8 Eroii Sanitari Boulevard, 050474 Bucharest, Romania
2
”Mina Minovici” National Institute of Legal Medicine, 9-11 Vitan-Bârzești Road, 077160 Bucharest, Romania
3
Department of Anatomy, Animal Physiology and Biophysics, Faculty of Biology, University of Bucharest, 91–95 Splaiul Independenței, 050095 Bucharest, Romania
4
Non-Governmental Research Organization Biologic, 14 Schitului Str., 032044 Bucharest, Romania
*
Author to whom correspondence should be addressed.
Int. J. Mol. Sci. 2026, 27(8), 3468; https://doi.org/10.3390/ijms27083468
Submission received: 6 March 2026 / Revised: 1 April 2026 / Accepted: 9 April 2026 / Published: 13 April 2026
(This article belongs to the Special Issue FTIR Miscrospectroscopy: Opportunities and Challenges)
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Abstract

Estimation of the postmortem interval (PMI) remains a major challenge in forensic science. We used attenuated total reflection (ATR)–Fourier-transform infrared (FTIR) spectroscopy combined with chemometric modeling for PMI prediction using vitreous humor samples from 20 forensic cases with known PMI (24.8–97.6 h) and 10 with unknown PMI. The intensities of vibrational bands commonly associated with PMI were analyzed, and several peaks in the carbohydrate/phosphate region showed significant correlations with PMI. Principal component analysis revealed time-dependent spectral evolution, with PC1 (48.1%) associated mainly with carbohydrate/phosphate variations and PC2 (37.6%) with protein structural changes. Partial least squares regression with two latent variables achieved a cross-validated RMSE of 15.8 h (R2 = 0.53) on all 20 known samples. Variable importance analysis identified glycoprotein degradation (1190 cm−1) and phospholipid breakdown (736 cm−1) as the dominant predictors, with traditional carbohydrate bands playing a secondary role. Predictions for unknown samples ranged from 27.1 to 80.1 h, with five of ten falling within the 90% prediction interval (±20 h) of the available estimates. This study presents a promising PMI estimation model that performed well on unseen samples, even if the sample size represents a methodological limitation that will be addressed in future investigations through larger, more diverse datasets.
Keywords: FTIR spectroscopy; postmortem interval (PMI); human vitreous humor; multivariate regression; peak intensity analysis; forensic science FTIR spectroscopy; postmortem interval (PMI); human vitreous humor; multivariate regression; peak intensity analysis; forensic science

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MDPI and ACS Style

Țurlea, I.R.; Curca, G.C.; Mernea, M.; Mătanie, A.C.; Fendrihan, S.; Mihăilescu, D.F. FTIR Spectroscopy of Vitreous Humor for Postmortem Interval Estimation: A Multivariate Regression Approach. Int. J. Mol. Sci. 2026, 27, 3468. https://doi.org/10.3390/ijms27083468

AMA Style

Țurlea IR, Curca GC, Mernea M, Mătanie AC, Fendrihan S, Mihăilescu DF. FTIR Spectroscopy of Vitreous Humor for Postmortem Interval Estimation: A Multivariate Regression Approach. International Journal of Molecular Sciences. 2026; 27(8):3468. https://doi.org/10.3390/ijms27083468

Chicago/Turabian Style

Țurlea, Ioana Ruxandra, George Cristian Curca, Maria Mernea, Alina Cristina Mătanie, Sergiu Fendrihan, and Dan Florin Mihăilescu. 2026. "FTIR Spectroscopy of Vitreous Humor for Postmortem Interval Estimation: A Multivariate Regression Approach" International Journal of Molecular Sciences 27, no. 8: 3468. https://doi.org/10.3390/ijms27083468

APA Style

Țurlea, I. R., Curca, G. C., Mernea, M., Mătanie, A. C., Fendrihan, S., & Mihăilescu, D. F. (2026). FTIR Spectroscopy of Vitreous Humor for Postmortem Interval Estimation: A Multivariate Regression Approach. International Journal of Molecular Sciences, 27(8), 3468. https://doi.org/10.3390/ijms27083468

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