Abstract
Currently, the contribution of genetic factors to the development of type 2 diabetes is becoming more obvious. Despite the available nine classes of hypoglycemic drugs, only 35–40 % of patients achieve an adequate glycemic control. One the reasons may be the genetic heterogeneity of diabetes mellitus. An increasing number of studies indicates that an individual set of gene polymorphisms can determine the therapeutic response to a particular drug and cause the development of undesirable effects. The article presents an overview of a new direction in the diagnosis and treatment of diabetes mellitus – personalized medicine. The pathogenetic mechanisms of the development of the disease, its heterogeneity and the difficulties of choosing the most effective hypoglycemic therapy are described. Data on the pharmacogenetic features of metformin are presented.