One-dimensional nanostructured manganese dioxide/polypyrrole (MnO2/PPy) composite was prepared by in situ chemical oxidation polymerization of pyrrole in the host of inorganic matrix of MnO2 , using complex of methyl orange (MO)/FeCl3 as a reactive self-degraded soft-template. The morphology and structure of the composite were characterized by infrared spectroscopy (IR) X-ray diffraction (XRD), scanning electron microscopy (SEM) and transmission electron microscopy (TEM). The results show that the MnO2/PPy composite consists of alpha-MnO2 and PPy with nanotube-like structure. Electrochemical properties of the composite demonstrated the material showed good electrochemical reversibility after 500 charge-discharge cycles in the potential range of -0.4 to 0.6 V, the tube-like nanocomposite has the potential application in electrochemical capacitor. (C) 2010 Elsevier B. V. All rights reserved.