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People are living longer, but exactly what determines who lives a very long life? To determine the possible association of the dopamine D4 receptor (DRD4) gene with longevity, investigators genotyped 310 subjects of European descent who were participating in a larger, long-term, prospective study (mean age, 95). DRD4 exhibits several polymorphisms resulting from a variable number tandem repeat, and the DRD4 7R allele has been associated with greater activity and novelty-seeking in children and young adults.
Compared with 2902 younger controls (age range, 7–45), the older subjects showed a highly significant 66% increase in the 7R/x genotype (i.e., a 72% increase in the frequency of the 7R allele); this increase was more often seen in women t…