Used as a chiral building block in the synthesis of pharmaceuticals, particularly in the development of active pharmaceutical ingredients (APIs) requiring high enantiomeric purity. Its protected amine and hydroxyl functional groups make it ideal for sequential coupling reactions in multi-step organic syntheses. Commonly employed in the preparation of neuroactive compounds and enzyme inhibitors where the (R)-configuration is critical for biological activity. Also utilized in medicinal chemistry for structure-activity relationship (SAR) studies due to its conformational rigidity and stereochemical stability.