Trigger inducible tertiary lymphoid structure formation using covalent organic frameworks for cancer immunotherapy

Abstract

The discovery of tertiary lymphoid structures (TLS) within tumor tissues provides a promising avenue to promote the efficacy of cancer immunotherapy. Yet, the lack of effective strategies to induce TLS formation poses a substantial obstacle. Thus, the exploration of potential inducers for TLS formation is of great interest but remains challenging. Here, inspired by the mechanism of artificially cultivated pearls, a covalent organic framework (COF) is employed to induce TLS formation. Single-cell sequencing analysis reveals that this is achieved by promotion of cytokine hypersecretion, which facilitates the maturation, proliferation, and migration of T and B cells, critical for triggering TLS formation. Furthermore, the efficacy of COF-mediated phototherapy in inducing TLS formation is validated in both the MC38 and 4MOSC1 female tumor models. Notably, a strong synergistic effect between COF-mediated phototherapy and αCTLA-4 is observed, resulting in the effective eradication of both primary and distant tumors, while also inhibiting tumor recurrence.