Structural elucidation of the chlordene isomer constituents of technical chlordane.

The technical chlordane constituents designated α-, β-, and γ-chlordene are isomers of chlordene (C10H6Cl6). These isomers are formed via the rearrangement of chlordene by the action of Cl2 or free-radical initiating agents, and they no longer possess the cyclodiene-type structure. Elucidation of these isomeric structures involved various chemical derivitization reactions. Oxidation with chromic oxide yielded ketones and epoxides while reduction with Zn-HOAc or CrCl2 produced mono- and didechlorinated homologs. Photoisom-ers, in which the two original ClC=CCl bonds had been cross-linked, resulted from their unsensitized uv irradiation. Spectral confirmation of structure was obtained by 1H NMR and gas chromatography-mass spectrometry (GC-MS) studies. It is postulated that α-chlordene is 1,2,3,5,7,8-hexa-chloro-1,3a,4,5,6,6a - hexahydro-1,4-ethenopentalene (III) and β-chlordene is 2,3,3a,4,5,7-hexa-chloro-3a,6,7,7a-tetrahydro-1,6-methano-1H-indene (XIII), with γ-chlordene (XI) being the 2,3,3a,4,5,8-hexachloro isomer of β-chlordene

The purpose and function of humour in health, healthcare and nursing: a literature review

This paper is a report of a review conducted to identify, critically analyse and synthesize the humour literature across a number of fields related to health, health care and nursing. The humour-health hypothesis suggests that there is a positive link between humour and health. Humour has been a focus of much contention and deliberation for centuries, with three theories dominating the field: the superiority or tendentious theory, the incongruity theory and the relief theory. A total of 1630 papers were identified, with 220 fully sourced and 88 included in the final review. There is a dearth of humour research within nursing yet, ironically, an abundance of non-evidence-based opinion citing prerequisites and exclusion zones. Examination of physician-patient interaction and the humour-health hypothesis demonstrates that use of humour by patients is both challenging and revealing, particularly with regard to self-deprecating humour