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World J Diabetes. Jan 10, 2016; 7(1): 1-7
Published online Jan 10, 2016. doi: 10.4239/wjd.v7.i1.1
Milestones in the history of diabetes mellitus: The main contributors
Marianna Karamanou, Athanase Protogerou, Gregory Tsoucalas, George Androutsos, Effie Poulakou-Rebelakou
Marianna Karamanou, Gregory Tsoucalas, George Androutsos, Effie Poulakou-Rebelakou, Department of History of Medicine, Medical School, University of Athens, 11527 Athens, Greece
Athanase Protogerou, Department of Pathophysiology, “Laiko” Hospital, Medical School, University of Athens, 11527 Athens, Greece
Author contributions: All authors equally contributed to this paper with conception and design of the study, literature review and analysis, drafting and critical revision and editing, and final approval of the final version.
Conflict-of-interest statement: There is no conflict of interest associated with any of the senior author or other coauthors contributed their efforts in this manuscript.
Open-Access: This article is an open-access article which was selected by an in-house editor and fully peer-reviewed by external reviewers. It is distributed in accordance with the Creative Commons Attribution Non Commercial (CC BY-NC 4.0) license, which permits others to distribute, remix, adapt, build upon this work non-commercially, and license their derivative works on different terms, provided the original work is properly cited and the use is non-commercial. See: http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc/4.0/
Correspondence to: Marianna Karamanou, MD, PhD, Department of History of Medicine, Medical School, University of Athens, Greece 4 str, Themidos, Kifissia, 11527 Athens, Greece. mkaramanou@med.uoa.gr
Telephone: +30-210-7461437 Fax: +30-210-8235710
Received: August 13, 2015
Peer-review started: August 13, 2015
First decision: September 17, 2015
Revised: December 5, 2015
Accepted: December 17, 2015
Article in press: December 18, 2015
Published online: January 10, 2016
Abstract

Diabetes mellitus is a group of metabolic diseases involving carbohydrate, lipid, and protein metabolism. It is characterized by persistent hyperglycemia which results from defects in insulin secretion, or action or both. Diabetes mellitus has been known since antiquity. Descriptions have been found in the Egyptian papyri, in ancient Indian and Chinese medical literature, as well as, in the work of ancient Greek and Arab physicians. In the 2nd century AD Aretaeus of Cappadocia provided the first accurate description of diabetes, coining the term diabetes, while in 17th century Thomas Willis added the term mellitus to the disease, in an attempt to describe the extremely sweet taste of the urine. The important work of the 19th century French physiologist Claude Bernard, on the glycogenic action of the liver, paved the way for further progress in the study of the disease. In 1889, Oskar Minkowski and Joseph von Mering performed their famous experiment of removing the pancreas from a dog and producing severe and fatal diabetes. In 1921, Frederick Banting and Charles Best extended Minkowski’s and Mering’s experiment. They isolated insulin from pancreatic islets and administrated to patients suffering from type 1 diabetes, saving thus the lives of millions and inaugurating a new era in diabetes treatment.

Keywords: History of endocrinology, Metabolic disorder, Diabetes mellitus, Aretaeus of Cappadocia, Insulin

Core tip: Diabetes mellitus has been known since antiquity and despite therapeutic advances it still remains an incurable chronic disease. In our historical article, we attempt to provide the most important steps in the history of diabetes mellitus from antiquity till nowadays. The contribution of leading medical figures such as Aretaeus of Cappadocia, Thomas Willis, Claude Bernard, Oskar Minkowski, Joseph von Mering, Frederick Banting and Charles Best is mentioned, in an attempt to highlight the development of our current knowledge in diabetes mellitus.