Lyophilized tumour cell-loaded B-doped carbon dots for simultaneous boron neutron capture therapy and enhancement of antitumor immunity of prostate cancer.

B agents are critical components in the application of boron neutron capture therapy (BNCT) for tumor treatment. The development of a multi-functional B agent plays an important role in the application of BNCT. This study presents a pioneering lyophilized-tumour-cell-based approach for the enhanced accumulation of B-doped carbon dots (B-CDs) within tumour tissue, irradiating thermal neutrons to treat prostate cancer. In this platform, lyophilized RM-1 cells function as both tumor cell antigens and delivery vehicles for B-CDs. This design facilitates the co-delivery of tumor antigens and B, thereby changing the immune status from "cold" to "hot" and prolonging the retention time of the B-CDs . Prostate cancer cells killed by BNCT mediated by this B agent not only damage the DNA, but ferroptosis is also an underlying mechanism. This powerful binary co-delivery system offers a novel strategy for combining BNCT with immunotherapy in the treatment of prostate cancer, providing a promising approach for BNCT-based combination immunotherapy.