Patienter med denne sygdom mangler et enzym, som kaldes glucocerebrosidase, hvilket medfører ophobning af et glycosphingolipid kaldet glucosylceramid i forskellige dele af kroppen, f. eks. milten, leveren og knoglerne.
Patients with this disease lack an enzyme called glucocerebrosidase, resulting in a glycosphingolipid called glucosylceramide building up in different parts of the body, such as the spleen, liver and bones.