UASp regulatory sequences drive expression of a mutant form of Hsap\SPTBN2 in which the leucine at residue 253 has been replaced by a proline. The construct is tagged with Tag:MYC.
Expression of one copy of Hsap\SPTBN2GM.Scer\UAS.P\T.T:Hsap\MYC under the control of Scer\GAL4GMR.PF results in a mild rough eye phenotype. 10 day old flies show a severe disruption of the retinal organisation, with thinning of the retina and loss of retinal neurons. The extent of the neurodegeneration in the eye becomes more severe as flies age. Eye pigmentation abnormalities are seen by day 30. A stronger phenotype is seen when two copies of the transgene are expressed.
Third instar larvae expressing Hsap\SPTBN2GM.Scer\UAS.P\T.T:Hsap\MYC under the control of Scer\GAL4elav.PU do not show a reduced bouton number at the neuromuscular junction per muscle area compared to controls. No crawling defects are observed in these larvae.