Used as a chromogenic substrate in enzymatic assays, particularly for detecting protease activity. It is commonly employed in microbiology and biochemistry to identify and differentiate bacterial species based on their ability to hydrolyze the amide bond, releasing 2-naphthylamine, which can then be coupled with a diazonium salt to produce a visible colored product. This reaction is utilized in rapid identification systems and agar-based tests for clinical and environmental samples. Also used in studies involving enzyme kinetics and inhibition due to its specificity toward certain peptidases.