Used primarily in research settings as an intermediate in the synthesis of complex organic molecules, particularly in the development of pharmaceuticals. It serves as a building block for compounds exhibiting biological activity, including potential antiviral and anticancer agents. Its nitrile functional group allows for further chemical modifications, enabling the creation of diverse derivatives for structure-activity relationship studies. Due to its reactivity, it is also employed in the preparation of heterocyclic compounds, which are common scaffolds in drug discovery.