Conjugate addition of various Grignard reagents to 1-alkyl-2-nitropyrroles and to 2- nitrothiophene has been investigated. 1-Alkyl-2-nitropyrroles undergo alkylation at 3 and 5 positions with prevalence of the latter isomer. On the contrary, in 2-nitrothiophene system, formation of the 3-isomer prevails. In both systems, a bulkier Grignard reagent favours the 5- isomer formation. This trend can be reversed increasing steric hindrance exerted by the 1- ...
[Ngwendson, Julius N.; Schultze, Cassandra M.; Bollinger, Jordan W.; Banerjee, Anamitro Canadian Journal of Chemistry, 2008 , vol. 86, # 7 p. 668 - 675]