What causes meningitis C?
Meningitis is a killer disease that takes hold of the body rapidly. We meet Sarah Burgman, a teenager who spent two weeks in a coma. After recovering she was left with scars and the loss of four fingertips. Meningitis C is caused by a bacterium which can grow so quickly that it overwhelms your bodys natural defences. 01.47 How can your body fight disease? Bacteria are too small to see, so microscope footage and 3D graphic animation explain how the bodys immune system responds to infection. White blood cells can engulf microbes whole or they can produce antibodies. Antibodies are chemicals that clump bacteria together so that they cannot grow. White blood cells can then mop them up. 04.43 How do vaccines work? Vaccinations prepare the immune system so that it can respond rapidly to infection. A nationwide vaccination programme has dramatically reduced the incidence of meningitis. A second animation shows how a vaccine causes the population of white blood cells responsible for fighting a
