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Background: DC-SIGNR (also called CD209L) has been extensively studied on its role in host genetic predisposition to viral infection.In particular, variable number tandem repeat (VNTR) of the neck-region of DC-SIGNR is highly polymorphic and the polymorphism has been investigated for genetic predisposition to various infectious diseases,though conflicting results had been reported.As infection is a major cause of human death and a mechanism of natural selection, we hypothesized that VNTR polymorphism of DC-SIGNR might have an effect on human life span.Methods: Here we collected 361 peri-centenarian individuals (age ≥94 for female and age ≥90 for male) and 342 geographically matched controls (age 22-53, mean 35.0 ± 12.0) from Han Chinese.The VNTR polymorphism of the neck region was determined by PCR and genotype was called by separating the PCR products in agarose gel.Results: A total of Ⅱ genotypes and 5 alleles were found in our population.The genotype distribution, allele frequencies and homozygote proportion did not show a significant difference between peri-centenarian and control group.As gender differences in lifespan are ubiquitously observed throughout the animal kingdom, we then stratified the samples by gender.There was more 6/7 genotypes in female peri-centenarian group than that in female control group, at a marginal level of significance (5.56 vs.1.28%, p =0.041).The difference was not significant after correction by Bonferroni method.It suggests a possible differential effect of DC-SIGNR VNTR genotypes between sexes.Further studies are warranted to confirm our preliminary findings and investigate the mechanisms of the underlying functions.Conclusions: Our study indicated that there was absence of association between the neck region polymorphism of DCSIGNR and longevity in Han Chinese population.But the question of whether the DC-SIGNR could affect longevity in a gender-specific pattern remains open.