Keywords: Bioinorganic chemistry / Amino acids / Luminescence / Macrocyclic ligands / Copper / Ruthenium / Molecular recognitionThe amino acid derivative [H-Lys{Ru(bipy) 2 m}-cyclenH 2 ](PF 6 ) 5 (7; Lys = lysine, bipy = 2,2Ј-bipyridyl, m = 4-carbonyl-4Ј-methyl-2,2Ј-bipyridyl, cyclen = 1,4,7,10-tetraazacyclododecane) has been synthesized. A modular approach was taken which involves only standard amide-coupling methods well-known from peptide synthesis. Compound 7 is readily soluble in water. It contains a luminescent ruthenium chromophore and a cyclen ligand which serves as a binding site for metal ions. The emission of 7 is pH-independent but