Fifty-six female C57BL/6N mice (CLEA Japan, Inc., Tokyo, Japan) aged 11–12 weeks were used in our study. Male mice were excluded in the current study due to their high mortality rates from DSS-induced colitis [31 (link)]. The mice were housed in a pathogen-free environment at a temperature of approximately 23 ± 3 °C, relative humidity of 55 ± 10%, and a 12 h light/dark cycle. The mice had free access to their diet and drinking water throughout the experiment. The ethics approval document of this animal experiment was provided on 6 February 2018.
Free full text: Click here