A conductive polymer is formed enzymatically in the presence of a
polynucleotide template. The method includes combining at least one redox
monomer with a polynucleotide template and a redox enzyme, such as
horseradish peroxidase, to form a reaction mixture. The monomer aligns
along the template before or during the polymerization. Therefore, the
polynucleotide template thereby affects the molecular weight and
conformation of the conductive polymer. When the conductive polymer is
complexed to a polynucleotide duplex, the conformation of the
polynucleotide duplex can be modulated by changing the oxidation state of
the conductive polymer.