Used in the synthesis of antiviral and anticancer agents, particularly as an intermediate in the preparation of pyrimidine-based nucleoside analogs. It serves as a building block in medicinal chemistry for developing compounds that interfere with viral replication or tumor cell proliferation. Also employed in research for modifying nucleic acid components to study structure-activity relationships. Its chloro and methyl functional groups allow selective substitutions, making it valuable in creating diverse derivatives for drug discovery.