In tRNA crystal structures, the only nonaromatic ribonucleoside, dihydrouridine (D) and 3'-adjacent nucleotides adopt the infrequent 2'-endo conformation. Analysis of D, DUA and UUA by circular dichroism (CD) and NMR confirmed that D produces the 2'-endo conformation of the trimer and is responsible for the same in tRNA. The nucleoside, 3-[3-(S)-amino-3-carboxypropyl]uridine (acp³U) occurs in the tRNA sequence D-acp³U-A. CD spectra indicated that D-acp³U-A and U-acp³U-A bind Mg²⁺, whereas acp³U, D-acp³U, DUA and UUA do not. Ion dependent changes in chemical shifts and paramagnetic broadening of ¹H signals indicated that Mg²⁺ coordination involved the acp₃U side chain and the ribose of A. The Mg²⁺-bound structure was modeled with simulated annealing, molecular mechanics and NMR restraints. Acp³U contributed to local charge density that facilitated Mg²⁺ coordination.