My sister, Annette Dolphin, who has died aged 74, was a distinguished neuroscientist known for her pioneering work on calcium channels, which open to allow calcium to enter cells and modify their activity. In particular, calcium channels in neurons contribute to movement, pain and epilepsy.
Annette had spent the past 28 years as professor of pharmacology at University College London. Over the course of her career she published more than 250 scientific papers, won a large number of prizes and awards, and became a global leader in the field of neuronal voltage-gated calcium channels. Her contributions to scientific research transformed our understanding of the behaviour of neurons, and her findings are still revealing how individual molecules can affect neurological disorders such as chronic pain.
