Click Chemistry at 25 and Actinide Covalency: A Chemical Breakdown

Summary

In this episode, Chemistry World reflects on the 25th anniversary of Click chemistry, explaining how this umbrella term captures reactions that join molecules quickly, reliably, and with broad substrate scope. The conversation highlights copper assisted CuAAC reactions, their role in bioconjugation and how purification often centers on removing residual copper for biological compatibility, enabling broad adoption across medicine and materials science. The show then turns to a new experimental milestone in actinide chemistry, where resonant elastic X-ray scattering sheds light on the elusive 5F orbital bonding. The discussion emphasizes the challenges of studying highly radioactive elements and the potential implications for nuclear fuel reprocessing and separations. Finally, the week’s Chemistry World news and a look back at carbon dioxide’s discovery round out the show.

• Defining Click chemistry and the copper catalyzed azide-alkyne cycloaddition
• Bioorthogonal chemistry enabling living-system applications
• Actinide covalency and the inner versus outer 5F orbital components
• Implications for drug delivery, materials, and nuclear waste reprocessing

Introduction and the 25th anniversary of Click chemistry