AUTHOR=Yang Fuhua , Zhang Yifei , Chen Zhi , Zhang Lu 

TITLE=VISTA Blockade Aggravates Bone Loss in Experimental Murine Apical Periodontitis

JOURNAL=Frontiers in Immunology

VOLUME=12

YEAR=2021

URL=https://www.frontiersin.org/journals/immunology/articles/10.3389/fimmu.2021.738586

DOI=10.3389/fimmu.2021.738586

ISSN=1664-3224

ABSTRACT=<p>V-domain Ig suppressor of T cell activation (VISTA) is a novel coinhibitory immune checkpoint molecule that maintains immune homeostasis. The present study explored the role of VISTA in human and murine inflammatory tissues of apical periodontitis (AP). VISTA was upregulated in inflammatory tissues of human AP. In mice, the expression of VISTA gradually increased with the development of mouse experimental apical periodontitis (MAP), the CD3<sup>+</sup> T cells, CD11b<sup>+</sup> myeloid cells, and FOXP3<sup>+</sup> regulatory T cells also gradually accumulated. Moreover, a blockade of VISTA using a mouse <italic>in vivo</italic> anti-VISTA antibody aggravated periapical bone loss and enhanced the infiltration of immune cells in an experimental mouse periapical periodontitis model. The collective results suggest that VISTA serves as a negative regulator of the development and bone loss of apical periodontitis.</p>