Used in the synthesis of cardiotonic drugs, particularly in the development of cardiac glycosides that enhance heart contraction. It serves as an intermediate in modifying steroid structures to improve pharmacological activity and selectivity for treating heart failure and certain arrhythmias. Its hydroxyl group at position 8 allows for chemical derivatization, enabling optimization of solubility and binding affinity to the Na⁺/K⁺-ATPase enzyme in cardiac tissue.