All animal experiments were conducted using protocols approved by our Institutional Animal Care and Use Committee. Protocols complied with the Guide for the Care and Use of Laboratory Animals available through the National Academy of Sciences. Male mice from the inbred mouse strains (129/SvlmJ, A/HeJ, A/J, AKR/J, B10.D2-H2/oSNJ, BALB/cByJ, BALB/cJ, BUB/BnJ, C3H/HeJ, C57BL/6J, DBA/2J, FVB/NJ, LP/J, LG/J, MRL/MpJ, NZB/BinJ, NZW/LaCJ, SM/J) were obtained from Jackson Labs (Bar Harbor, Maine, USA) at 7−8 weeks of age, and housed for 7−10 days in our animal care facility for acclimation before use in experiments. The mice were kept under pathogen-free conditions and were provided food and water ad libitum with a 12 : 12 h light:dark cycle.
