Enantioselective addition of 2-methyl-3-butyn-2-ol to aldehydes: preparation of 3-hydroxy-1-butynes

We report the first example of enantioselective aldehyde additions of 2-methyl-3-butyn-2-ol, a commodity bulk chemical that is readily available. Following a facile fragmentation reaction, the addition reactions provide access to optically active terminal acetylenes as useful building blocks for asymmetric synthesis.