The iab-8 transcript, expressed in the CNS, is essential in Drosophila for fertility in both sexes. After two unsuccessful attempts at generating a reporter line that could recapitulate the pattern of expression of the iab-8 RNA, our project became intertwined with a second project centered on a micropeptide that could be expressed from a version of the iab-8 RNA called msa. Using transfection in tissue culture cells and in vivo transgenic constructs, we characterized the presence of short open reading frames present in the two firsts exons of the iab-8 transcript acting as translational repressors for the micropeptide. Using what we learned, we generated a Gal4 reporter line that allowed for the characterization of the pattern of expression of the iab-8 RNA in different tissues at both the larval stage and in the adult. These findings led to numerous hypotheses about how the iab-8 RNA may function in reproduction in males and females.