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The dendritic architecture represents the fourth major class of polymers. Though hyperbranched polymers and structurally-perfect dendrimers (e.g., poly(amidoamine), PAMAM) both share this designation, the latter are of greater use for nanoreactor applications. One such application that exploits the container/reactor properties of dendrimers is the controlled growth of nanoclusters. Herein, we provide a review of the recent synthetic methods for nanocluster growth using a dendritic host, and their use in a variety of applications. The benefits of using this macromolecular host will also be discussed, within a historical context of colloidal entraining agents. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]