Recent Developments in the Ruthenium-Catalyzed Azide Alkyne Cycloaddition (RuAAC) Reaction

The ruthenium-catalyzed azide-alkyne cycloaddition (RuAAC) gives access to 1,5-disubstitued triazoles in a single atom-economical step and offers advantages compared to its copper-catalyzed counterpart in that both terminal and internal alkynes can be employed. This review summarizes recent findings in this field during the last eight years, covering mechanistic investigations, synthetic developments, as well as applications in medicinal chemistry, polymer synthesis and physical organic chemistry.