Extracellular wood-degrading enzymes of the brown-rot fungus Postia placenta were localized using colloidal gold labeled monoclonal antibodies to the β-1,4-xylanase (32 to 36 kDa) fraction of P. placenta. Postia placenta was grown from agar onto glass cover slips, immunolabeled with or without prior fixation, and examined by scanning electron microscopy. Enzymes were localized on the hyphal surface and on the clumped fibrillar elements mycofibrils of the hyphal sheath following fixation with glutaraldehyde. If fixation was omitted, labeling was diffuse and not localized on individual or clumped mycofibrils. We conclude that extracellular decay enzymes are weakly bound (noncovalently) to, but not identical with, the linear mycofibrillar elements of the hyphal sheath. The linear structural elements of the hyphal sheath may play an important role in transport and presentation of wood-degrading enzymes during the decay process. Key words: brown-rot fungi, enzymes, mycofibrils, hyphal sheath, immunolabeling, monoclonal antibodies, colloidal gold, scanning electron microscopy.