A Self-Adjuvant Photothermal Carbon Dot-Based Nanovaccine for Multimodal Nasopharyngeal Cancer Treatment and Prophylaxis

Abstract

Developing a “full-cycle” strategy that integrates both treatment and prophylaxis remains a central challenge against nasopharyngeal carcinoma (NPC). Here, a biomimetic nanovaccine (CDC/Toy@CCM) is designed by coating toyocamycin (Toy)-loaded redox-responsive carbon dot clusters (CDCs) with homologous cancer cell membranes (CCMs). The obtained nanovaccine exhibits an average size of 70.7 nm, a high drug loading capacity (12.3%), and a superior photothermal conversion efficiency of 48.7%. The nanovaccine leverages the homologous targeting capacity of CCMs for precise tumor homing, while the disulfide-cross-linked CDCs enable glutathione-triggered drug release specifically within the tumor microenvironment for controlled chemotherapy. Under near-infrared laser irradiation, the CDCs generate robust photothermal ablation of primary tumors, and the combination of chemotherapy and photothermal therapy (PTT) effectively induces immunogenic cell death (ICD), which synergizes the self-adjuvant of CDCs and CCM antigens to generate significant antitumor response to suppress both primary and distant tumors in a bilateral NPC mouse model. In a prophylactic setting, the nanovaccine pre-vaccination generates effective immune protection against subsequent tumor challenge. This work provides a promising “full-cycle” nanoplatform that synergistically integrates PTT, chemotherapy, and immunotherapy for both NPC treatment and prophylaxis.