Hierarchical Assembly of Polydiacetylene Microtube Biosensors Mediated by Divalent Metal Ions

Polydiacetylenes (PDAs) constitute a family of conjugated amphiphilic polymers that display unique color and fluorescence properties. Described is the hierarchical assembly of micrometer-sized tubes that comprise a melamine-substituted PDA derivative. The nano- to microscale transformations of the amphiphilic building blocks were induced by addition of divalent metal ions. The PDA microtubes facilitated the high-sensitivity fluorescence detection of bacteria.