Vinyl-, propargyl-, and allenylsilicon reagents in asymmetric synthesis: a relatively untapped resource of environmentally benign reagents.

An up-to-date in-depth review of the current virtues and limitations in the realm of carbonyl addition reactions with allenyl-, propargyl-, and vinylsilicon reagents, encompassing numerous practical as well as pedagogical principles is presented. Comparisons of chemo-, regio-, and stereoselectivity and reactivity are drawn. Synthetic applications and challenges associated with each class of organosilane are discussed threading together the prospects of these green carbanion surrogates.