<title>Biotinylated polyalkylthiophene thin films and monolayers that specifically incorporate phycobiliproteins: toward smart materials</title>

We are investigating thin film and monolayer systems that involve conjugated conducting polymers and specific biological macromolecules. One class of conducting polymers, polyalkylthiophenes, are derivatized with biotin. These biotinylated polymers form the basis for a generic cassette system of attachment for any biological molecule through biotinylation or interaction with streptavidin. The high affinity of the biotin-streptavidin system, used in sequential steps, forms the basis of the cassette method. We have formed both monolayers and thin films (a few nanometers) of the cassette assembly in which phycobiliproteins are incorporated. We are investigating the optical signal transduction properties of specific phycobiliproteins (phycoerythrin, phycocyanin and allophycocyanain) using the cassette system on the inner surface of glass capillaries and on optical fiber surfaces. Phycobiliprotein photocurrent signals in conducting polymer matrices on microelectrodes are also being investigated. Our aim is to integrate the signal transduction mechanisms of the phycobiliproteins within monolayers or thin films of the conducting polymers to create biosensors and related smart materials for applications in biomedicine and biotechnology.