Subjects were recruited between January 2004 and August 2007 in the Greater Vancouver Regional District in British Columbia, Canada. Participants were 85 years or older at the time of recruitment and reported that they had never been diagnosed with cancer, cardiovascular disease, diabetes, major pulmonary disease, or Alzheimer disease. We conducted detailed questionnaires about their personal and family medical history, medication and supplements. We also took blood pressure measurements, assessed their body mass index, smoking habits, alcohol consumption, physical exercise, stress history, and educational and occupational background. Standard geriatric tests to assess memory, cognition, psychological status, and mobility of study subjects were performed. These included the Folstein Mini Mental Status Exam (MMSE), the Instrumental Activities of Daily Living Scale (IADL), the Geriatric Depression Scale (GDS), and the Timed Get Up and Go Test (TUG). Out of a pool of 300 subjects recruited by June 2005, we selected 47, who scored very high on the geriatric tests, for candidate gene re-sequencing. Average scores for these geriatric tests were: MMSE = 28.5, IADL = 22.3, GDS = 1.1, and TUG = 11.3.
