The Prefix ‘Nor’ in Chemical Nomenclature

Abstract

IN his review of the new edition of “The Extra Pharmacopoeia” (Martindale), Vol. 2, Prof. J. H. Gaddum (Nature, Feb. 25, p. 350) states, “surely nor means ‘N ohne Radikal’ and not ‘the next lower homologue’ ”. I have seen this explanation of the prefix ‘nor’ given several times in medical publications but never in a chemical text-book, and I suspect that “N ohne Radikal” is a mnemonic invented by a German pharmacologist to assist his students to remember the constitutions of noradrenaline, norephedrine and similar compounds. However this may be, the fact remains that the prefix nor is used for many compounds which contain no nitrogen at all ; for example, norpinic acid, norœstrone, nor-equilenin, etc. The statement made in Martindale is therefore perfectly correct.