The amine reactive succinimidyl ester of green fluorescent AO (acridine orange) can be conjugated to peptides, proteins, drugs, polymeric materials and biomolecules with primary amine groups. The conjugates then are able to complex with nucleic acids, resulting in green fluorescence nucleic acid conjugate adduct, making them potentially useful for studies of nucleic acid binding to various biomolecules, such as DNA-binding proteins. It is also possible that conjugates of other biomolecules might be capable of monitoring their transport into the nucleus. AO dye conjugates of solid or semisolid matrices, such as microspheres, magnetic particles or various resins, might be useful for the detection or affinity isolation of nucleic acids.