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and because the genetic markers within the MHC region are shown to be in high linkage disequilib- rium with each other, we do not rule out the fur- ther possiblity of finding a strong association between the MHC-III linked HSP70 polymor- phism and human longevity.

Acknowledgements

This study received financial support from: Danish Centre for Molecular Gerontology, Danish Med- ical Research Council (SSVF), Danish Science Council (SNF), Senetek PLC and the Velux Foundation.

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