Recent Progress in Catalytic Enantioselective Desymmetrization of Prochiral Organosilanes for the Synthesis of Silicon-Stereogenic Compounds

It is highly important to develop efficient synthetic methods for various enantioenriched chiral compounds due to their high significance in our life. In this regard, asymmetric catalysis is one of the most attractive ways of synthesizing such compounds from achiral precursors. Although various methods have been developed for the enantio­selective preparation of carbon-stereogenic compounds, the corresponding methods for silicon-stereogenic compounds are much less established. In particular, little progress has been made on catalytic enantioselective synthesis using prochiral organosilanes until recently. This account focuses on the recent progress in the catalytic enantio­selective preparation of silicon-stereogenic organosilanes through ­desymmetrization of prochiral organosilanes.1 Introduction2 Desymmetrization of Diorganodihydrosilanes3 Desymmetrization of Tetraorganosilanes3.1 Desymmetrization through Cleavage of Silicon–Carbon Bonds3.2 Desymmetrization without Cleavage of Silicon–Carbon Bonds4 Conclusion