Most of exon 2 was replaced in-frame by the coding sequence of tau (Mapt) and green fluorescent protein (GFP), followed by translation and transcription termination sequences and the MC1-neomycin cassette. Western blot analysis confirmed the absence of protein in the brain. RT-PCR confirmed the presence of GFP transcripts, however the parkin-tau-GFP fusion protein is not clearly detectable by Western blot or immunohistochemical analysis. (J:309429)