Figure 5.

(A) Scheme summarizing the mechanisms of combining NIR-mediated PDT with CTLA-4 checkpoint blockade for cancer immunotherapy. UCNP-Ce6-R837 nanoparticles under NIR light would enable effective photodynamic destruction of tumors. The generated TAA in the presence of those nanoparticles as the adjuvant are able to promote strong antitumor immune responses, which with the help of a CTLA-4 checkpoint blockade would eliminate primary tumors under direct NIR exposure, inhibit the growth of distant tumors left behind after PDT, and further yield a long-term immune memory to prevent tumor reoccurrence. Copyright 2017, American Chemical Society (Xu et al., 2017a). (B) Schematic diagram of spindle-like of UCNP@SiO₂@Au synthesis and anticancer therapy. Copyright 2020, American Chemical Society (Lin et al., 2020).