Abstract: A nanowire may be isolated from a bacterium, wherein the nanowire includes c-type heme subunits or pili proteins and is capable of establishing an electrical connection with an insoluble electron acceptor. The c-type heme subunits may comprise OmcS or OmcZ cytochrome subunits or any combination thereof. The pili proteins may have an amino acid sequence with at least one residue modified, from a wild-type strain of the microorganism, to include an aromatic amino acid. The nanowire may have metallic or semiconducting conductive properties, and may be integrated into an electronic device.