The 2,4-dimethylpent-3-yloxycarbonyl (Dec) group is presented as a new protecting group for tyrosine. The Doc group is 1000-fold more stable towards the nucleophile piperidine than the commonly used 2-bromobenzyloxycarbonyl (2-BrZ) group is, and it is completely cleaved by hydrogen fluoride. (C) 1997, Elsevier Science Ltd.