Proliferating cell nuclear antigen, an auxiliary protein of deoxyribonucleic acid polymerase-delta, has been shown to be a reliable marker of nuclear deoxyribonucleic acid synthetic activity. We applied a monoclonal antibody to proliferating cell nuclear antigen to a series of serial stereotactic biopsies from patients with glioblastoma multiforme and found the proliferative activity to vary relative to biopsy location within or surrounding the solid tissue component of the tumor. Twenty-seven trajectories in 26 patients were analyzed, each consisting of two to five sequential 10 x 1.5 mm core biopsies (mean = 3). The proliferative index (PI) was greatest in those cells located at the solid tumor-infiltrated parenchyma interface. PI values were significantly lower in those biopsy cores located proximal (within infiltrated parenchyma) and distal (within solid tumor tissue) to the solid tumor-infiltrated parenchyma interface (median PI values, proximal to distal: 0.38, 0.66, 5.45 solid tumor-infiltrated parenchyma interface], 0.39, 0.09%). The mean PI values were significantly lower in neoplastic cells samples from regions of peripheral hypodensity on computed tomographic scans compared with those sampled from contrast-enhancing regions (0.9 and 3.91%, respectively). There was no significant difference in the mean PI values of neoplastic cells sampled from regions of contrast enhancement or central hypodensity (3.91 and 4.31%, respectively).