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This is Scientific American's 60-Second Science. I'm Cynthia Graber. This will just take a minute.

Princess Ahmose-Meryet-Amon enjoyed a privileged lifestyle in what is now Luxor about 3,500 years ago. But she may not have been a happy princess towards the end. Two of her three main coronary arteries¹ were calcified², a marker of atherosclerosis. Someone in her situation today would have bypass surgery.

Scientists discovered her condition with a full-body CT scan of her mummified remains³. The princess has thus become the oldest known case of coronary artery⁴ disease. Researchers presented their finding at the International Conference of Non-Invasive Cardiovascular Imaging in Amsterdam.

The ancient Egyptian diet included fruit and vegetables, wheat and barley⁵, small amounts of meat, and bread and beer. And Egyptians were active. Sounds like a recipe for a healthy heart. So why did the Princess die in her 40s?

The researchers suggest that she could have been genetically⁶ predisposed to heart problems. Or she may have eaten a richer diet than commoners did. She could have had inflammation from common parasitic⁷ diseases. Or there may be an as yet unknown cause of cardiovascular pathology. The mummy scans show that heart disease, considered a result of our modern lifestyle, may not be so modern after all.

Thanks for the minute. For Scientific American's 60-Second Science, I'm Cynthia Graber.

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1 arteries
n.动脉( artery的名词复数 )；干线，要道
参考例句：
Even grafting new blood vessels in place of the diseased coronary arteries has been tried. 甚至移植新血管代替不健康的冠状动脉的方法都已经试过。来自《简明英汉词典》 This is the place where the three main arteries of West London traffic met. 这就是伦敦西部三条主要交通干线的交汇处。来自《简明英汉词典》

2 calcified
v.（使）钙化，（使）硬化( calcify的过去式和过去分词 )
参考例句：
The rock calcified over the centuries. 经过几个世纪，石头发生了钙化。来自《简明英汉词典》 By age 10, 50% of patients have calcified cortical tubers. 10岁的时候，50%的病人出现钙化结节。来自互联网

3 remains
n.剩余物，残留物；遗体，遗迹
参考例句：
He ate the remains of food hungrily.他狼吞虎咽地吃剩余的食物。 The remains of the meal were fed to the dog.残羹剩饭喂狗了。

4 artery
n.干线，要道；动脉
参考例句：
We couldn't feel the changes in the blood pressure within the artery.我们无法感觉到动脉血管内血压的变化。 The aorta is the largest artery in the body.主动脉是人体中的最大动脉。

5 barley
n.大麦，大麦粒
参考例句：
They looked out across the fields of waving barley.他们朝田里望去,只见大麦随风摇摆。 He cropped several acres with barley.他种了几英亩大麦。

6 genetically
adv.遗传上
参考例句：
All the bees in the colony are genetically related. 同一群体的蜜蜂都有亲缘关系。 Genetically modified foods have already arrived on American dinner tables. 经基因改造加工过的食物已端上了美国人的餐桌。来自英汉非文学 - 生命科学 - 基因与食物

7 parasitic
adj.寄生的
参考例句：
Will global warming mean the spread of tropical parasitic diseases?全球变暖是否意味着热带寄生虫病会蔓延呢？ By definition,this way of life is parasitic.从其含义来说，这是种寄生虫的生活方式。