Used as a chiral building block in the synthesis of pharmaceuticals, particularly in the development of centrally acting muscle relaxants and neuroactive agents. Its stereochemistry makes it valuable for creating enantiomerically pure compounds. The sulfur-containing functional group allows for further chemical modifications, such as oxidation to sulfoxides or sulfones, enabling diverse derivatization pathways in medicinal chemistry. Also employed in asymmetric synthesis and as a ligand precursor in catalysis.