Blood samples and analyses
BLOOD
Blood sampling was performed by lab assistants, filling two 8.5 ml serum tubes with a gel layer per participant. Each tube was left for 20 min before being centrifuged with 3400 RPM (2000 G) for 10 min, and finally transferred to 5-ml Sarstedt tubes and stored frozen (-80˚C). All samples were analyzed by a professional lab (Fürst, Oslo, Norway) according to standard procedures.