4-(Dimethylamino)-benzaldehyde, 98.0+%

para-Dimethylaminobenzaldehyde is an organic compound containing amine and aldehyde moieties which is used in Ehrlich's reagent and Kovac's reagent to test for indoles. The carbonyl group typically reacts with the electron rich 2-position of the indole but may also react at the C-3 or N-1 positions. It may also be used for determination of hydrazine. para-Dimethylaminobenzaldehyde is the main ingredient in Ehrlich's reagent. It acts as a strong electrophile which reacts with the electron-rich α-carbon (2-position) of indole rings to form a blue-colored adduct. It can be used to detect the presence of indole alkaloids. Not all indole alkaloids give a colored adduct as result of steric hindrance which does not allow the reaction to proceed. Ehrlich's reagent is also used as a stain in thin layer chromatography and as a reagent to detect urobilinogen in fresh, cool urine. If a urine sample is left to oxidize in air to form urobilin the reagent will not detect the urobilinogen. By adding few drops of reagent to 3 mL of urine in a test tube one can see a change of color, to dark pink or red. The degree of color change is proportional to the amount of urobilinogen in the urine sample.