Ultraviolet excited laser induced fluorescence (LIF) was studied in normal and atherosclerotic human arterial wall in vitro. Using excitation wavelengths from 306 to 310 nm, two distinct emission bands were observed in the LIF of both normal and pathologic aorta: a short wavelength band, peaking at 340 nm emission, which was attributed to tryptophan; and a long wavelength band, peaking at 380 nm emission, which was assigned to a combination of collagen and elastin. The intensity of the short wavelength band was quite sensitive to the choice of excitation wavelength, while the long wavelength band was not, so that the relative contributions of the bands could be controlled by the precise choice of excitation wavelength. A valley in the spectra at 418 nm was attributed to fluorescence reabsorption by oxy-hemoglobin. By using 308 nm excitation to observe emission simultaneously from both the short and long wavelength bands, normal and atherosclerotic aorta were spectrally distinct. Two LIF emission intensity ratios were defined to characterize both the relative tryptophan fluorescence content as well as the ratio of elastin to collagen fluorescence in each spectrum. The differences in these two emission ratios among the various histologic tissue types correlated qualitatively with the histologic and biochemical compositions of these tissues. By combining these parameters in a binary classification scheme, normal and atherosclerotic aorta were correctly distinguished in 56 of 60 total cases. Furthermore, atherosclerotic plaques, atheromatous plaques, and exposed calcifications could be classified individually with sensitivities/predictive values of 90%/90%, 100%/75%, and 82%/82%, respectively.