Brunner's glands

Brunner's glands (or duodenal glands) are

compound tubular submucosal glands
found in that portion of the duodenum
which is above the hepatopancreatic
sphincter (i.e sphincter of Oddi). It also
contains submucosa which creates
special glands. The main function of these
glands is to produce a mucus-rich alkaline
secretion i.e. mucous (containing
bicarbonate) in order to:
protect the duodenum from the acidic
content of chyme (which is introduced
into the duodenum from the stomach);
provide an alkaline condition for the
intestinal enzymes to be active, thus
enabling absorption to take place;
lubricate the intestinal walls.
 Brunner's glands

Section of duodenum. (Duodenal glands in

submucosa are labeled at right, fourth from
the top.)

Details

System Digestive system

Location Duodenum

Identifiers

Latin glandulae duodenales

MeSH D002011 (https://mes
hb.nlm.nih.gov/recor
d/ui?ui=D002011)

TA98 A05.6.02.017 (https://

ifaa.unifr.ch/Public/E
ntryPage/TA98%20Tr
ee/Entity%20TA98%2
0EN/05.6.02.017%20
Entity%20TA98%20E
N.htm)

TA2 2957 (https://ta2view

er.openanatomy.org/?
id=2957)

FMA 71622 (https://bioport

al.bioontology.org/ont
ologies/FMA/?p=clas
 ses&conceptid=http%
3A%2F%2Fpurl.org%2
Fsig%2Font%2Ffma%
2Ffma71622)

Anatomical terms of microanatomy

They also secrete epidermal growth factor,

which inhibits parietal and chief cells of
the stomach from secreting acid and their
digestive enzymes.[1] This is another form
of protection for the duodenum.

They are the distinguishing feature of the

duodenum, and are named for the Swiss
physician who first described them,
Johann Conrad Brunner.
 Human Brunner's gland

Structure

Histology

The duodenum can be distinguished from

the jejunum and ileum by the presence of
Brunner's glands in the submucosa.
Function
The Brunner glands, which empty into the
intestinal glands, secrete an alkaline fluid
composed of mucin, which exerts a
physiologic anti-acid function by coating
the duodenal epithelium, therefore
protecting it from the acid chyme of the
stomach. Furthermore, in response to the
presence of acid in the duodenum, these
glands secrete pepsinogen and
urogastrone, which inhibit gastric acid
secretion.
Clinical significance
Hyperplasia of Brunner glands with a
lesion greater than 1 cm was initially
described as a Brunner gland adenoma.
Several features of these lesions favor
their designation as hamartomas,
including the lack of encapsulation; the
mixture of acini, smooth muscles, adipose
tissue, Paneth cells, and mucosal glands;
and the lack of any cell atypia. These
hamartomas are rare, with approximately
150 cases described in the literature. It is
estimated that they represent
approximately 5–10% of benign duodenal
tumors. They are variable in size, typically
1–3 cm, with only a few reported cases of
lesions larger than 5 cm.

Most patients with Brunner gland

hamartomas are asymptomatic or have
nonspecific complaints such as nausea,
bloating, or vague abdominal pain.

Most reports in the literature describe

local surgical resection of Brunner gland
hamartoma via duodenotomy.
Increasingly, successful endoscopic
resection has been reported and is
primarily used for pedunculated Brunner
gland hamartomas. The endoscopic
approach in selective cases appears to be
safe, less invasive, and less costly.

See also
Peutz–Jeghers syndrome
List of distinct cell types in the adult
human body

References
1. Gregory, H.; Preston, B. M. (1977-01-01).
"The primary structure of human
urogastrone". International Journal of
Peptide and Protein Research. 9 (2): 107–
118. doi:10.1111/j.1399-
3011.1977.tb03470.x (https://doi.org/10.11
11%2Fj.1399-3011.1977.tb03470.x) .
 ISSN 0367-8377 (https://www.worldcat.or
g/issn/0367-8377) . PMID 300079 (https://
pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/300079) .

External links
Histology image: 11504loa (https://ww
w.bu.edu/phpbin/medlib/histology/p/11
504loa.htm) – Histology Learning
System at Boston University - "Digestive
System: Alimentary Canal:
pyloro/duodenal junction, duodenum"
Histology image: 11513loa (https://ww
w.bu.edu/phpbin/medlib/histology/p/11
513loa.htm) – Histology Learning
System at Boston University - "Digestive
 System: Alimentary Canal:
pyloro/duodenal junction"
Histology image: 11609loa (https://ww
w.bu.edu/phpbin/medlib/histology/p/11
609loa.htm) – Histology Learning
System at Boston University - "Digestive
System: Alimentary Canal: duodenum,
plicae circularis"

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This page was last edited on 18 July 2023, at

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