lincRNA不仅在炎症反应中发挥作用，而且是调控免疫功能的关键因子，lincRNA-EPS被发现能精确调控巨噬细胞免疫应答基因的表达，本项目组前期发现LPS诱导性牙周炎小鼠的牙周组织中lincRNA-EPS表达明显降低；敲除小鼠lincRNA-EPS后，小鼠牙周炎明显加重，但其机制尚不清楚。本项目在前期研究的基础上，拟构建lincRNA-EPS敲除的LPS诱导性牙周炎小鼠模型，研究lincRNA-EPS在牙周炎发生发展中的作用，找出与lincRNA-EPS相结合的关键蛋白，分析lincRNA-EPS/NLRP3/炎症相关caspases发挥的作用，并揭示其调控机制。同时构建lincRNA-EPS递送系统，引入外源性lincRNA-EPS，“挽救”疾病模型小鼠牙周炎，研究外源性lincRNA-EPS在牙周组织中免疫调控的作用，探寻有针对性的牙周炎治疗方法，从而为牙周炎治疗提供新的理论依据。

LincRNA plays a role in the inflammatory response, but also is a key factor in the regulation of immune function.LincRNA-EPS has recently been found to precisely regulate the expression of macrophage of immune response genes (IRGs) .In the early stage of this project,the expression of lincRNA-EPS in periodontal tissues of mice stimulated by LPS was significantly decreased. Meanwhile, we successfully knocked out lincRNA-EPS in mice, and found that the inflammation of periodontal tissue was worse than before, but its mechanism was not clear yet. Based on previous studies, we prepare to establish lincRNA-EPS knockout model by LPS-induced periodontitis in mice to study the role of lincRNA-EPS in the occurrence and development of periodontitis, to find the protein which can combine with lincRNA-EPS, to analyze the role of lincRNA-EPS / NLRP3 / inflammation-related caspases so as to reveal its regulatory mechanism. At the same time, we will fabricate lincRNA-EPS delivery system, introduce exogenous lincRNA-EPS to ‘cure’ periodontitis in the model mice for studying the role of exogenous lincRNA-EPS of immunoregulatory effect in periodontal tissues and exploring the targeted remedies, thereby providing a new theoretical foundation for the treatment of periodontitis.