Gaucher Disease: Causes, Symptoms and Diagnosis.

Gaucher disease is a rare, autosomal recessive genetic disorder. It is caused by a deficiency of the lysosomal enzyme, glucocerebrosidase, which leads to an accumulation of its substrate, glucosylceramide, in macrophages. In the general population, its incidence is approximately 1/40,000 to 1/60,000 births, rising to 1/800 in Ashkenazi Jews. The main cause of the cytopenia, splenomegaly, hepatomegaly, and bone lesions associated with the disease is considered to be the infiltration of the bone marrow, spleen, and liver by Gaucher cells. Lysosomal storage diseases (LSDs) are a group of heterogeneous inherited diseases caused by mutations affecting genes that encode either the function of the lysosomal enzymes required for the degradation of a wide range of complex macromolecules, but sometimes the function of specific transporters needed to export degraded molecules from the lysosomes. Type-1 Gaucher disease, which affects the majority of patients, is characterized by effects on the viscera, whereas t