Rebecca Sitsapesan (1959 – 2 June 2022) was a professor and cardiac pharmacologist known for her work on single channel recording, ryanodine receptors and TRIC proteins.[2] She was Professor of Pharmacology at the University of Oxford from 2013 to 2019, and Emeritus Professor from 2019 until her death in 2022.[3]
Rebecca Sitsapesan | |
|---|---|
| Born | June 1959 |
| Died | (aged 62)[1] |
| Alma mater | University of Aberdeen University of Leeds University of Strathclyde |
| Scientific career | |
| Fields | Pharmacology |
| Institutions | |
Career edit
Sitsapesan studied an undergraduate degree in pharmacology at the University of Aberdeen, graduating in 1981 and going on to study an MSc on cardiovascular sciences at the University of Leeds. She then did a PhD at the University of Strathclyde focusing on the effects of opiates on ischemia-induced arrhythmias.[3]
Sitsapesan later took up a post at the National Heart and Lung Institute at Imperial College, London where she was made a British Heart Foundation lecturer in 1991. In 2001, she moved to the University of Bristol where she was made the Professor of Pharmacology in 2011.[4] While there, she studied the role of FKBP12.6 and cADPR molecules in regulating the channels through which calcium ions flow.[5] She also worked on the relation between protein kinase C and excessive amounts of calcium release into heart muscle, which can cause arrhythmias.[6][7]
In August 2013, Sitsapesan moved to the University of Oxford, taking up the post of Professor of Pharmacology.[8] She became a tutorial fellow in medicine at Hertford College in 2014,[2] and was a member of the college's governing body and its academic committee.[9] She headed a group studying ion channels and the release of Ca2+ from intracellular stores.[10][11] She also collaborated with Antony Galione on the type 2 two-pore channel and the effects of ion release channels on lysosomes.[3][10]
She retired from her posts in 2019 due to ill health, becoming Emeritus Professor of Pharmacology and an Emeritus Fellow of Hertford College.[12] She continued to contribute to and publish papers and supervise her laboratory until a few days before her death.[3][13]
Personal life edit
Sitsapesan was a Christian.[3] She was married and had children.[3] She died on 2 June 2022 at the age of 62.[1][3]
References edit
- ^ a b "The biophysical properties of TRIC-A and TRIC-B and their interactions with RyR2". Rockefeller University Press. 26 September 2023. Retrieved 4 October 2023.
- ^ a b "Rebecca Sitsapesan, 1959-2022". Hertford College. 4 July 2022. Retrieved 11 July 2022.
- ^ a b c d e f g "PROFESSOR REBECCA SITSAPESAN 1959-2022". Department of Pharmacology, University of Oxford. 28 June 2022. Retrieved 11 July 2022.
- ^ "Professor Rebecca Sitsapesan MSc, PhD". Hertford College. Archived from the original on 3 April 2022. Retrieved 11 July 2022.
- ^ "University of Bristol Annual Report 2006/07" (PDF). University of Bristol. p. 6. Retrieved 11 July 2022.
- ^ "Disruptions in calcium flow linked to heart failure". University of Bristol. 29 January 2011. Retrieved 11 July 2022.
- ^ "The puzzle of excess calcium". Laboratory News. 26 April 2011. Retrieved 11 July 2022.
- ^ "Rebecca M A Sitsapesan". Department of Pharmacology, University of Oxford. Retrieved 11 July 2022.
- ^ "Hertford College Annual Report and Financial Statements" (PDF). Hertford College. 31 July 2016. Retrieved 12 July 2022.
- ^ a b "Sitsapesan Group - Intracellular Ion Channels and Ca²⁺ Release". Department of Pharmacology, University of Oxford. Retrieved 11 July 2022.
- ^ "Studying how the mechanical stress of the heartbeat could affect ion channel proteins". British Heart Foundation. Retrieved 12 July 2022.
- ^ David Greaves (June 2020). "Medicine" (PDF). Hertford College Magazine (99): 107–109. Retrieved 11 July 2022.
- ^ "Sitsapesan, Rebecca". Scopus. Retrieved 11 July 2022.