US Patent 7498155 - Microbial nanowires

http://www.freepatentsonline.com/7498155.html

This patent from the University of Massachusetts teaches a merging of nanoelectronics and biotechnology by engineering a microorganism as an electrical circuit component. Claim 1 reads:

1. A method of preparing a conductive electronic circuit component, said method comprising:

providing a bacterium expressing a conductive proteinaceous pilus;

providing a culture medium conditioned for conductive pilin production, said medium comprising an electron acceptor;

contacting said bacterium with said medium over a time sufficient for assembly of said pilus;

isolating said conductive pilus from said medium; and

coupling said conductive pilus to a circuit component.