Animals

Experiments were performed on sex-balanced 4- to 6-month-old C57BL6/J wild-type mice (RRID:IMSR_JAX:000664), obtained from a breeding colony kept at the University of Catania. Mice were maintained with a controlled temperature (21 ± 1°C) and humidity (50%) on a 12 h light/dark cycle, with ad libitum access to food and water. All experiments involving animals were conducted in accordance with the guidelines laid down by the European Community Council (2010/63/EU) and the ARRIVE (Animal Research: Reporting of In Vivo Experiments) guidelines. The experimental protocols were approved by the University Institutional Animal Care and Use Committee (Protocols #327/2013-B and #119–2017-PR). The experiments complied with the ARRIVE guidelines and were conducted to minimize the pain and suffering of the animals.