Patricia Arquette hopes her late sister Alexis is reincarnated into a loving family

Patricia tweeted: "Thank you all for your condolences and words of support and prayers for our family.

"If there is reincarnation I pray to God that you come back Lex into a family that loves you as much as we do."

Patricia previously praised Alexis - who died from cardiac arrest following a long battle with HIV for refusing to compromise herself for the sake of her career.

She wrote following her sibling's death: "Alexis was a brilliant artist and painter, a singer, an entertainer and an acto.

"Her career was cut short, not by her passing, but by her decision to live her truth and her life as a transgender woman. Despite the fact that there are few parts for trans actors, she refused to play roles that were demeaning or stereotypical. She was a vanguard in the fight for understanding and acceptance for all trans people."

The news of the actress' tragic passing was announced by her brother Richmond on Facebook.

He wrote at the time: "Our brother Robert, who became our brother Alexis, who became our sister Alexis, who became our brother Alexis, passed this morning September 11, at 12:32 am. He was surrounded by all of his brothers and sisters, one of his nieces and several other loved ones. We were playing music for him and he passed during David Bowie's Starman. As per his wishes, we cheered at the moment that he transitioned to another dimension.

"I am feeling immense gratitude to have been afforded the luxury of sharing life with him/her, for learning from Alexis, for being given the gift of being able to love her/him and to be loved by him/her. He was a force. He died as he lived, on his own terms. I am immensely grateful that it was fast and painless. It was an incredible moving experience and I am humbled and grateful to have been able to have been with him as he began his journey onward. Thank you, Alexis, I love you and will always love you (sic)."