Novel racemic 4-amino-1-, 2-, and 3-hydroxybutylphosphinic acids and the corresponding 4-amino-1-, 2-, and 3-hydroxybutyl methylphosphinic acids have been synthesized. The phosphinic acid groups are bioisosteres of the carboxylic acid group, and some of these hydroxy amino acids are GABAB antagonists. The novel phosphinic acids were evaluated for their GABAA and GABAB receptor binding properties using