{"symbol":"CHIT1","synonyms":["CHIT","CHITD","CHI3"],"name":"chitinase 1 (chitotriosidase)","description":"Chitotriosidase is secreted by activated human macrophages and is markedly elevated in plasma of Gaucher disease patients. The expression of chitotriosidase occurs only at a late stage of differentiation of monocytes to activated macrophages in culture. Human macrophages can synthesize a functional chitotriosidase, a highly conserved enzyme with a strongly regulated expression. This enzyme may play a role in the degradation of chitin-containing pathogens. Several alternatively spliced transcript variants have been described for this gene. [provided by RefSeq, Jan 2012]","ncbiEntrezGeneId":1118,"ncbiEntrezGeneUrl":"http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/gene/1118","proteins":[{"symbol":"CHIT1_HUMAN","href":"/api/1.0/protein/CHIT1_HUMAN"}],"hgncRootFamilies":[{"name":"Chitinases (CHI)","href":"/api/1.0/gene_family/Chitinases+%28CHI%29"}]}