The genotypes were analyzed at 11 polymorphic DNA loci (restriction fragment length alleles) on chromosome 22 in tumor and normal tissue from 35 unrelated patients with meningiomas. Sixteen tumors retained the constitutional genotype along chromosome 22, while 14 tumors (40%) showed loss of one constitutional allele at all informative loci, consistent with monosomy 22 in the tumor DNA. The remaining 5 tumors (14%) showed loss of heterozygosity in the tumor DNA at one or more chromosome 22 loci and retained heterozygosity at other loci, consistent with variable terminal deletions of one chromosome 22 in the tumor DNA. The results suggest that a meningioma locus is located distal to the myoglobin locus, within 22q12.3-qter. Multiple loci on other chromosomes also were studied, and 12 of the 19 tumors with losses of chromosome 22 alleles showed additional losses of heterozygosity at loci on one to three other chromosomes. All tumors that retained the constitutional genotype on chromosome 22 also retained heterozygosity at all informative loci on other chromosomes analyzed, suggesting that the rearrangement of chromosome 22 is a primary event in the tumorigenesis of meningioma.