He studied in Stuttgart, Strasbourg, and Paris, and in 1802 was asked by Cuvier (a distant cousin) to help edit his masterpiece on comparative anatomy. From notes and counsel from Cuvier, Duvernoy prepared the last three volumes of Leçons d'anatomie comparée, writings that involved respiration, circulation, digestive organs, et al.
In 1805 he returned to Montbéliard, where he worked as a practitioner of medicine. In 1827 he was elected professor to the Faculty of Sciences at Strasbourg, and during the next ten years published a number of treatises on anatomical subjects. After the death of Cuvier in 1832, he worked at arranging his papers for publication. In 1837 he became a professor of natural history at the Collège de France.
Written works
Dissertation sur l'hystérie, 1801
Notice historique sur les ouvrages et la vie de M. Le B'on Cuvier, 1833
Leçons sur l'histoire naturelle des corps organisés, professées au Collège de France, 1839
Résumé sur le fluide nourricier, ses réservoirs et son mouvement, dans tout le règne animal, 1839
Notice sur les publications d'anatomie comparée, de physiologie, 1844
Fragments sur les organes génito-urinaires des reptiles et leurs produits, 1848
