Abstract

Accurate prediction of the relative biological effectiveness (RBE) of boron neutron capture therapy (BNCT) is challenging. The therapy is different from other radiotherapy; the dynamic distribution of boron-containing compounds in tumor cells affects the therapeutic outcome considerably and hampers accurate measurement of the neutron-absorbed dose. Herein, we used boron-containing metal-organic framework nanoparticles (BMOFs) with high boron content to target U87-MG cells and maintain the concentration of the 10B isotope in cells. The content of boron in the cells could maintain 90% (60 ppm) within 20 min compared with that at the beginning; therefore, the accurate RBE of BNCT can be acquired. The effects of BNCT upon cells after neutron irradiation were observed, and the neutron-absorbed dose was obtained by Monte Carlo simulations. The RBE of BMOFs was 6.78, which was 4.1-fold higher than that of a small-molecule boron-containing agent (boric acid). The energy spectrum of various particles was analyzed by Monte Carlo simulations, and the RBE was verified theoretically. Our results suggested that the use of nanoparticle-based boron carriers in BNCT may have many advantages and that maintaining a stable boron distribution within cells may significantly improve the efficiency of BNCT.

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