All values are expressed as mean ± SEM. Hypotheses were tested using either a one-way or two-way ANOVA, followed by a Bonferroni post-hoc test for multiple comparisons between groups, or an unpaired t-test, where appropriate. For quantitative PCR, the ratio of the relative concentration of peptide to β-actin mRNA in the experimental vs. control samples was analyzed by an unpaired t-test. The criterion for use of the term ‘significant’ in the text is p < 0.05.
