GFAP and cerebellar ataxia: Interestingly, specific deletion of this gene in glial cells in Drosophila generated FA-like symptoms comparable to those of the whole-body knockout flies [59], and its ablation in developing mice from GFAP-expressing neuronal and astrocyte precursors resulted in severe ataxia and early death, associated with growth and survival impairments in cerebellar astrocytes [60].