Obituary: Professor Edward Carmeliet 1930 – 2021

Professor Edward Carmeliet, who passed away on April 5, 2021, was a pioneer in cardiac electrophysiology with a research career spanning from the early 1950s to 2020. His work focused on understanding the mechanisms underlying the action potential and its implications for arrhythmias. He began his research on cardiac muscle, studying the effects of temperature and the modulation of the cardiac action potential by frequency. Throughout his career, he studied many ionic currents and ion transporters, with a particular interest in Cl-. His work on Cl- was the first to show increased contribution of Cl- at depolarised potentials in Purkinje fibres. He also conducted significant research on K+ currents and calcium homeostasis. Professor Carmeliet was also interested in pacemaker mechanisms, leading to the discovery of the funny current and a comprehensive view of a complex clock mechanism. He had more than 200 collaborators and former students worldwide, reflecting his influence in the field.