Brunner, Johann
 Swiss anatomist, 1653-1727

Brunner, professor of medicine at Heidelberg, performed some of the earliest experiments on the pancreas, noting in 1683 that pancreatic excision in dogs resulted in extreme thirst and polyuria. In 1687 he discovered the duodenal "Brunner's glands" (although he thought they secreted the main digestive juices; it was Claude Bernard who, 200 years later, discovered the primary secretory organ in digestion to be the pancreas). Brunner's glands secrete an alkaline mucous that helps neutralize acidic chyme entering the small intestine from the stomach.         

Adapted from  www.fasthealth.com/affiliates/h_asmoc_al/dictionary/b/Brunner_gland.php