Q-PCR Gene Expression Analysis

The RNA extraction was performed as previously described [38 (link)]. The sequences of primer pairs used in this assay are shown in Additional file 1: Table S2. Q-PCR was conducted by amplifying 20 μl of diluted cDNA with the SYBR Green Q-PCR kit (Vazyme no.Q711–02, Nanjing, China) on an ABI ViiA 7 Q-PCR System (Applied Biosystems, Waltham, MA). Each sample was run in triplicate and PCR reactions without the addition of the template were used as blank controls. The relative quantification of the expression of the target genes was measured using glyseraldehyde-3-phosphate dehydrogenase (GAPDH) mRNA as an internal control.