1,3-Dihydroxyacetone is the main active ingredient in sunscreen tanning skin care preparations, an important precursor for the synthesis of a variety of fine chemicals, and a food additive that can be produced on an industrial scale by microbial fermentation on Gluconobacter oxydans.

5,6-Dihydrouridine, a modified base, is located in conserved positions within the D-loop of tRNA in Eukaryota, Bacteria, and some Archaea.

Tetrahydrobiopterin (BH4) is a cofactor for aromatic amino acid hydroxylases and an essential cofactor for nitric oxide synthase (NOS), which is used in the study of endothelial dysfunction such as hypertension, hypercholesterolemia, and diabetes.