A Homotypic Membrane-Camouflaged Biomimetic Nanoplatform with Gold Nanocrystals for Synergistic Photothermal/Starvation/Immunotherapy

Although photothermal therapy (PTT) has great potential for tumor inhibition, this single mode of action frequently encounters recurrence and metastasis, highlighting the urgent need for developing combination therapy. Inspired by established evidence that PTT could induce efficient immunogenic cell death (ICD), we here developed a versatile biomimetic nanoplatform (denoted as AuDRM) for the synergism of photothermal/starvation/immunotherapy against cancer. Specifically, dendritic mesoporous silica nanoparticles (NPs) were successfully constructed followed by the in situ synthesis of Au NPs in the mesopores. Afterward, a hybrid membrane was coated to facilitate the loading of R837. Upon efficient accumulation in the tumor tissue by homotypic targeting, the pH-sensitive membrane could be jettisoned to ensure the exposure of Au NPs for starvation therapy and the effective release of the immunostimulator R837 for enhancement of immunotherapy. Except for the PTT-mediated tumor ablation, the induction of ICD coupled with the release of tumor antigens could work synergistically with the immunostimulator R837 for inhibiting the primary tumor as well as the metastasis and induce a long-term immune memory effect for tumor inhibition via a vaccine-like function. Thus, this study paves the way for high-performance tumor ablation by the synergism of photothermal/starvation/immunotherapy.