A complex of salmon milt deoxyribonucleic acid (DNA) and the cationic surfactant cetyltrimethylammonium (CTMA) forms an organic-soluble biomaterial that can be readily incorporated within an organically modified silane-based xerogel. The photoluminescence (PL) intensity and excited-state luminescence lifetime of tris(4,7'-diphenyl-1,10'-phenanathroline) ruthenium(II) [(Ru(dpp)3](2+), a common O2 responsive luminophore, increases in the presence of DNA-CTMA within the xerogel. The increase in the [Ru(dpp)3](2+)excited-state lifetime in the presence of DNA-CTMA arises from DNA intercalation that attenuates one or more non-radiative processes, leading to an increase in the [Ru(dpp)3](2+) excited-state lifetime. Prospects for the use of these materials in an oxygen sensor are demonstrated.