Large-scale highly oriented ZnO nanorod arrays were directly grown on zinc foil through a simple hydrothermal reaction of Zn foil with aqueous ammonia at 100 °C. The products were characterized with X-ray diffraction, scanning electron microscopy, and transmission electron microscopy. It was found that the ZnO nanorods were single crystalline with the wurtzite structure and grown in the [0001] direction, and have a controllable diameter in the range of 250-100 nm with lengths of up to 4.0 µm by varying the growth time. The ammonia plays a key role in the formation of ZnO nanorod arrays, and a possible mechanism is also proposed to account for the growth of the ZnO nanorod arrays. The ZnO nanorod arrays exhibited a UV emission with peak at 396 nm and a blue green emission with a peak at 488 nm. The UV and blue green emissions are considered to originate from the exciton transition and the transition between the oxygen vacancy and interstitial oxygen, respectively. In addition, the UV and blue green emission intensities can be adjusted by changing the growth time.

The X-ray repair cross-complementing group 3 (XRCC3) protein plays an important role in the repair of DNA double-strand breaks. The relationship between XRCC3 polymorphisms and the risk of radiation-induced adverse effects on normal tissue remains inconclusive. Thus, we performed a meta-analysis to elucidate the association between XRCC3 polymorphisms and radiation-induced adverse effects on normal tissue. All eligible studies up to December 2014 were identified through a search of the PubMed, Embase and Web of Science databases. Seventeen studies involving 656 cases and 2193 controls were ultimately included in this meta-analysis. The pooled odds ratios (ORs) with corresponding 95% confidence intervals (CIs) were calculated to evaluate the association between XRCC3 polymorphisms and the risk of radiation-induced normal tissue adverse effects. We found that the XRCC3 p.Thr241Met (rs861539) polymorphism was significantly associated with early adverse effects induced by radiotherapy (OR = 1.99, 95%CI: 1.31–3.01, P = 0.001). A positive association lacking statistical significance with late adverse effects was also identified (OR = 1.28, 95%CI: 0.97–1.68, P = 0.08). In addition, the rs861539 polymorphism was significantly correlated with a higher risk of adverse effects induced by head and neck area irradiation (OR = 2.41, 95%CI: 1.49–3.89, p = 0.0003) and breast irradiation (OR = 1.41, 95%CI: 1.02–1.95, p = 0.04), whereas the correlation was not significant for lung irradiation or pelvic irradiation. Furthermore, XRCC3 rs1799794 polymorphism may have a protective effect against late adverse effects induced by radiotherapy (OR = 0.47, 95%CI: 0.26–0.86, P = 0.01). Well-designed large-scale clinical studies are required to further validate our results.

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