Isabelle Hesling is a researcher at the Institut des Maladies Neurodégénératives (IMN), UMR 5293, based in Bordeaux, France. She is affiliated with the Neurofunctional Imaging Group (GIN), a collaborative research unit involving the University of Bordeaux, CNRS, and CEA. Her work focuses on the neurofunctional aspects of language processing, particularly the expressivity dimension of speech.

In her 2024 review article titled “The Expressivity Dimension of Speech is the Basis of the Expression Dimension: Evidence from Behavioural and Neuroimaging Studies”, published in IgMin Research, Hesling explores how prosody—the rhythm, stress, and intonation of speech—interacts with the content of speech.

She discusses how prosody engages both the right hemisphere's prosodic areas and the left hemisphere's networks responsible for sentence processing. This work contributes to understanding the neural underpinnings of expressive language and its modulation by emotional and cognitive factors. 

Hesling is also involved in the development of the Brain Imaging Lateralization & GIN (BIL&GIN) database, a unique multimodal resource aimed at studying brain connectivity and hemispheric specialization. This initiative supports research into how brain networks are organized and how they relate to cognitive functions. 

Her contributions are integral to advancing the field of cognitive neuroimaging, particularly in understanding the complex interplay between brain structure, function, and cognition.

Isabelle Hesling's research interests primarily focus on cognitive neuroscience, with a particular emphasis on neurofunctional imaging and the neural mechanisms underlying language processing. Her work explores how speech prosody—such as rhythm, intonation, and stress—interacts with speech content, engaging both right and left hemisphere brain regions. She investigates the neural basis of expressive language, highlighting how prosody influences communication and emotional processing. Additionally, Hesling is involved in multimodal imaging techniques to study brain connectivity and hemispheric specialization, contributing to the understanding of how different brain networks support various cognitive functions. Her research also extends to the role of neuroimaging in understanding neurodegenerative diseases and language impairments. By using advanced imaging methods like functional MRI and EEG, she aims to further uncover the intricate connections between language, cognition, and brain activity. Hesling’s work holds significant implications for clinical applications, particularly in diagnosing and treating speech and language disorders.