The invention provides transgenic animals having a transgene comprising a genomic human alpha synuclein segment including six exons, five introns and at least one mutation associated with synucleinopathic disease operably linked to a human alpha synuclein promoter. The transgenic animals have characteristics of synucleinopathic disease including elevated levels of alpha synuclein in the brain, formation of intracellular deposits of alpha synuclein that have at least one, and preferably all features of Lewy bodies, formation of alpha-synuclein fragments, or phosphorylated forms of alpha synuclein, loss of neuronal cells, glial cells or oligodentricytes, impairment of motor function and/or impairment of cognitive function.