Used as a chiral building block in the synthesis of pharmaceuticals, particularly in the development of biologically active compounds where stereochemistry plays a critical role. Its protected azetidine ring serves as a structural motif in medicinal chemistry, enabling the design of enzyme inhibitors and receptor modulators. The hydroxyl and carboxylate functionalities allow for further chemical modifications, making it valuable in creating diverse compound libraries for drug discovery. Commonly employed in the preparation of protease inhibitors and central nervous system agents due to its favorable conformational and pharmacokinetic properties.