Used in pharmaceutical research as a precursor for synthesizing various biologically active compounds. It plays a role in the development of drugs targeting neurological disorders due to its structural similarity to amino acids involved in neurotransmitter synthesis. Additionally, it is utilized in the study of enzyme inhibition and as a building block in peptide chemistry for creating modified peptides with potential therapeutic applications. Its thiol group makes it valuable in redox reactions and as a ligand in metal coordination chemistry.