[New thoughts on diabetes mellitus (author's transl)].

The significance of genetic factors in the origination of a diabetes mellitus is generally recognized. Besides this, the possibility of a virus etiology and an autoimmune etiology is discussed. The numerous very complex actions of insulin on the cells of liver, muscle and other organs take place with the assistance of special receptors, the number of available receptors probably being important. A great advance in therapy is the development of the monocomponent insulins. They are primarily indicated in the labile forms, especially in infantile and juvenile diabetes, in insulin resistance, for high antiinsulin titiers, insulin allergy, lipoatrophy and microangiopathy. We must wait and see how far transplantation of a pancreas or Langerhans islet cells or the "artificial" pancreas can be used in future treatment.