单选题 In 1988, a significant percentage of seals in the Baltic Sea died from viral diseases: off the coast of Scotland, however, the death rate due to viral diseases was approximately half what it was for the Baltic seals. The Baltic seals had significantly higher levels of pollutants in their blood than did the Scottish seals, Since pollutants are known to impair marine mammals' ability to fight off viral infection, it is likely that the higher death rate among the Baltic seals was due to the higher levels of pollutants in their blood.
Which one of the following, if true, provides the most additional support for the argument?

A、 The large majority of Scottish seals that died were either old or unhealthy animals.
B、 The strain of virus that killed Scottish seals overwhelms impaired immune systems must more quickly than it does healthy immune systems.
C、 There were slight fluctuations in the levels of pollutants found in the blood of Baltic seals.
D、 The kinds of pollutants found in the Baltic Sea are significantly different from those that have been detected in the waters off the coast of Scotland.
E、 (E) Among marine mammals other than seals, the death rate due to viral diseases in 1988 was higher in the Baltic Sea than it was off the Scottish coast.

【正确答案】 E

【答案解析】[解析] 要对本题的论述构成支持有两种途径：第一是证明波罗的海的海豹死亡率较高不是由他因所致；第二是证明污染性物质确实能使海豹对病毒性疾病的抵抗力降低，(E)的论述表明了污染性物质能使海洋生哺乳动物死于病毒性疾病的死亡率上升，因此(E)通过演绎的论证方法对本题的论述构成了支持。