Why Claude Bernard is called one of the greatest of all men of science?

Claude Bernard, a French physiologist, has been called one of the greatest of all men of science. Bernard was fascinated with the mechanics of digestion.

        He made a number of experiments in which he made opening into the stomachs of live animals in order to study their workings. His experiments resulted in a number of important discoveries, including the finding that the small intestine played a key role in the digestive process.

      His experimentation also helped show the significance of the pancreas. In 1857, Bernard discovered glycogen, the large molecule found in animals’ livers which acts as a reserve store of carbohydrates, and helps to regulate blood sugar. Bernard also studied the nervous system. While engaged in this research, Bernard made the important discovery that oxygen was carried around the body by red corpuscles in an animal’s blood.

     Bernard was one of the founders of experimental medicine, and played a vital role in laying down the basic rules of experimentation in the life sciences.