Betti reaction
The Betti reaction is a chemical addition reaction of aldehydes, primary aromatic amines and phenols producing α-aminobenzylphenols.
The Betti reaction is a special case of the Mannich reaction.
History
The reaction is named after the Italian chemist Mario Betti (1857-1942). Betti worked at many universities in Italy, including Florence, Cagliari, Siena, Genoa and Bologna, where he was the successor of Giacomo Ciamician. Betti's main research was focused on stereochemistry, and the resolution of racemic compounds, the relationship between molecular constitution and optical rotation, as well asymmetric synthesis using chiral auxiliaries or in the presence of polarized light.
In 1939 Mario Betti was appointed the Senator of the Kingdom of Italy.
In 1900 Betti hypothesized that 2-napthol would be a good carbon nucleophile to the imine produced from the reaction of benzaldehyde and aniline. This led to the Betti reaction.
Today, the name has grown to refer to any reaction of aldehydes, primary aromatic amines and phenols producing α-aminobenzylphenols.
