“…We posited that the enhanced oxaphilicity of ruthenium might enable asymmetric couplings to unactivated aldehydes. In the case of alkoxyallenes, such oxaphilicity might also result in internal chelation to form ( Z )-σ-allylmetal nucleophiles (Scheme ). , Hence, to accommodate aldehyde binding, such chelation must be reversible and, to preserve syn -diastereoselectivity, carbonyl addition must be fast relative to ( Z )-to-( E )-isomerization of the fluxional allylruthenium intermediates . Furthermore, as described by Marek, for γ,γ-disubstituted allylmetal nucleophiles gauche interactions associated with the developing C–C bond can reverse the equatorial vs axial preference of the aldehyde substituent to erode or invert diastereoselectivity.…”