Seventy-two 10-week-old male NC/Nga mice were purchased from Japan SLC Inc (Shizuoka, Japan) and maintained under conventional conditions [12 mice per cage, a 12/12-h light/dark cycle, and ad libitum access to water and a commercial diet (CE-2; Japan Clea Co., Tokyo, Japan)] in a facility maintained at a temperature of 23-25°C and a humidity of 50-70%. Animal experiments were performed with the approval of the Research Ethics Committee of Oita University of Nursing and Health Sciences. [5-7].