Identification of genes regulated by Fer2 in the fly brain using an overexpression approach

The transcription factor Fer2 plays a neuroprotective role in the dopaminergic neurons of the fly brain, but the underlying molecular mechanisms are not understood. By performing RNA-seq on fly heads after Fer2 inducible overexpression, we identified hundreds of genes differentially regulated in response to Fer2 overexpression. Combining this dataset with Fer2 ChIP-seq on the fly head, we obtained a list of 26 direct target genes, bound and regulated by Fer2. RNA-seq on fly heads from 14 day-old flies overexpressing a UAS-Fer2::FLAG transgene driven by a heat-inducible GAL4 (hs-GAL4). Heat-shock treatment was used to induce Fer2 overexpression. Flies not carrying the UAS-Fer2::FLAG transgene were used as controls. N=3 per group.