When Scer\GAL4^hs.PB;GATAe^Scer\UAS.cSa strains are raised at room temperature, all the progeny die during the first larval instar, indicating leaky expression from the Scer\GAL4^hs.PB regulatory sequence. When raised at 18^oC, the larvae develop normally. When the larvae are heat-shocked for 30 minutes at 30^oC, and then returned to room temperature for 18 hours, they display a number of abnormalities, including melanisation of the trachea and hindgut. All of the larvae die prior to pupation.

Ectopic expression of GATAe^Scer\UAS.cSa in the developing fat body, salivary glands and blood, under the control of Scer\GAL4^c754 results in an extensively spotted and scarred second instar larval cuticle, with melanised portions of the hindgut and excessive lamellocytes, suggesting that expression of GATAe^Scer\UAS.cSa causes a systemic immune response in the absence of infection.

The normal fat body is a single-layered tissue, but in response to GATAe^Scer\UAS.cSa expression (under the control of Scer\GAL4^c754) it exhibits buckling and regions composed of multiple cell layers. In addition, nmuclei are larger than normal in these cells, suggesting an additional round of endoreplication.