Provided is a hydroxyl-protected alcohol comprising a thermolabile
hydroxyl-protecting group comprising a 2-pyridyl substituent and a
precursor of the thermolabile hydroxyl-protected alcohol. An exemplary
thermolabile hydroxyl-protected alcohol is represented by the formula
Pg-O--R, wherein Pg is a protecting group of the formula: (Formula)
wherein: A is a 2-pyridyl; Z is CH.sub.2 or NR.sup.1; R.sup.1, R.sup.2,
R.sup.2', R.sup.3 and R.sup.3' are the same or different and each can be,
e.g., H, alkyl, or alkyl comprising an aryl substituent; W is CO, CS, or
SO; and R is the organic residue of the hydroxyl-protected alcohol. Also
provided is a method of producing an alcohol, which method comprises
heating the hydroxyl-protected alcohol, which optionally may be obtained
from a precursor, at a temperature effective to cleave the
hydroxyl-protecting group. The method can be used to produce
oligonucleotides.