Tissue Expression Pattern of PMK-2 p38 MAPK Is Established by the miR-58 Family in <i>C. elegans</i>

<div><p>Analyses of gene expression profiles in evolutionarily diverse organisms have revealed a role for microRNAs in tuning tissue-specific gene expression. Here, we show that the relatively abundant and constitutively expressed miR-58 family of microRNAs sharply defines the tissue-specific expression of the broadly transcribed gene encoding PMK-2 p38 MAPK in <i>Caenorhabditis elegans</i>. Whereas PMK-2 functions redundantly with PMK-1 in the nervous system to regulate neuronal development and behavioral responses to pathogenic bacteria, the miR-58, miR-80, miR-81, and miR-82 microRNAs function redundantly to destabilize <i>pmk-2</i> mRNA in non-neuronal cells with switch-like potency. Our data suggest a role for the miR-58 family in the establishment of neuronal-specific gene expression in <i>C. elegans</i>, and support a more general role for microRNAs in the establishment of tissue-specific gene expression.</p>