SCAVI NEWS A monthly newsletter of the South Central Association of the Visually Impaired SCAVI, P.O. Box 2216, Bedford, IN 47421 Newsletter written and produced by President Rita Kersh. Rita can be reached at 812-278-3038 or e-mail at hoosierrita60@gmail.com June 2023 WHAT'S HAPPENING IN SCAVI Our next meeting will be our chapter picnic on Saturday, June 17 at noon at the Thornton shelter house. Members are to bring a side dish and/or dessert. If you’d like to play the trivia game, bring a “white elephant” prize in a bag. This can be something new or slightly used you no longer want. Bring a guest, especially someone who is interested in our group! SCAVI BIRTHDAYS None this month. NEWS New small-molecule drugs show potential clinical utility in treating world’s leading causes of blindness Reviewed by Emily Henderson, B.Sc.May 9 2023 In a University of California, Irvine-led study, researchers have discovered small-molecule drugs with potential clinical utility in the treatment of age-related macular degeneration (AMD), diabetic retinopathy (DR), and retinitis pigmentosa (RP). The study, titled, "Stress resilience-enhancing drugs preserve tissue structure and function in degenerating retina via phosphodiesterase inhibition," was published in the Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences. In this study, we introduce a new class of therapeutics called 'Stress Resilience-Enhancing Drugs' (SREDs) for the treatment of neurodegenerative conditions, specifically the world's leading causes of blindness in age-related and inherited retinal diseases. Through selective, pharmacological inhibition of cyclic nucleotide phosphodiesterases, our prototypical SREDs slowed or halted the development and progression of retinopathies in a number of genetic and environmental animal models." Krzysztof Palczewski, PhD, Donald Bren Professor of Ophthalmology at the UCI School of Medicine and corresponding author on the study. Today, approximately 350 million people worldwide suffer from debilitating vision loss caused by either AMD or DR, and a large majority of these cases (>90%) have only minimally effective or no treatment options available. These chronic, progressive retinal diseases, including retinitis pigmentosa, arise from genetic and environmental disruptions of cellular and tissue stability. Such disruptions accumulate with repeated exposures to stress over time, leading to progressive visual impairment and, in many cases, legal blindness. Despite decades of research, therapeutic options for the millions of patients suffering from these disorders remain severely limited, especially for treating earlier stages of disease when the opportunity to preserve the retinal structure and visual function is greatest. RECIPE CORNER VISIONARY LEMON BARS 1 cup flour 1/4 cup powdered sugar 1/2 cup butter, (1 stick) 2 eggs, beaten 1 cup sugar 2 tablespoons lemon juice Mix the flour, powdered sugar and butter with a pastry blender and pat into an 8-inch square pan. Bake at 350 degrees for 20 minutes. Then mix the eggs, sugar, and lemon juice and add to the previous part. Return to the oven and bake for 25 minutes more. Sprinkle with powdered sugar and cut into square. Make 16 squares. Apple Oat Crisp 4 cups tart apples, peeled, cored, sliced 2 tablespoons lemon juice 1 cup rolled oats 1/2 cup all-purpose flour 1/2 cup packed brown sugar 1/2 stick butter, chilled, cut into small pieces 1 teaspoon ground cinnamon 1/4 teaspoon ground nutmeg Preheat oven to 375 degrees. In bowl, toss apples with lemon juice. Place into greased 9-inch square baking pan. In another bowl, combine remaining ingredients, mix just until combined. Sprinkle over apples. Bake for 30 minutes, or until bubbly. Makes 6 to 8 servings. ANGEL STRAWBERRY BANANA TRIFLE INGREDIENTS: 1 5-ounce package instant vanilla pudding mix 3 cups cold milk 1 (9 inch) prepared angel food cake, cut in cubes 4 bananas, sliced 1/4-inch thick 1 1/2 pounds sliced strawberries 1 (12 ounce) container frozen whipped topping, thawed DIRECTIONS: Prepare pudding with milk according to package directions. In a glass serving dish (or trifle bowl) layer half the cake pieces, half the pudding, half the bananas, half the strawberries and half the whipped topping. Repeat layers. Cover and chill in refrigerator 4 hours before serving. Pineapple and bread Recipe Preheat oven to 350. Mix together: 1 8-ounce package softened cream cheese or light cream cheese 1 tsp. vanilla 1/2 cup well-drained crushed pineapple Separately mix 1 cup sugar or Splenda and 2 tsp. cinnamon. Remove the crusts from 18 pieces of white bread. Spread the pineapple stuff on each slice. Fold in the edges of the bread to the center. Brush with 1/4 cup butter. Roll in the cinnamon and sugar mix and bake for 20 mins. SCAVI MINUTES SCAVI met on Monday, May 1, 2023 in the fellowship hall of the Bedford Free Methodist Church. Those in attendance were: Cindy Brooking, Sue Fleener, Ida and Loney Galey, Rita Kersh, Leslie Mullis, Denise Mullis, Mike and Dolly Sowder, James and Karen Veen. Rita Kersh, president, called the meeting to order and introduced our speaker, Andrea Rope, optometrist. Andrea shared information about eye diseases such as macular degeneration, glaucoma, diabetic retinopathy, and others. She feels encouraged that today’s treatments are better than those in the past and research continues. The business meeting began by Rita also. Ida Galey made a motion that we accept the minutes. It was seconded by Karen Veen. The motion passed. Sue Fleener made a motion that we accept the treasurer’s reports for February and March. Dolly Sowder seconded it and the motion passed. The April report will be completed soon. The balance on 3/31/23 was $4,688.08. The ACBI board met on April 29 and will donate an Amazon card for the ACB auction. We discussed adding to the gift card for the convention. Dolly Sowder made the motion that we contribute $25. Sue Fleener seconded it. The motion passed. Our annual picnic will be held on June 17 at noon at Thornton Park. SCAVI will provide chicken, drinks and paper products. Members will provide the sides and desserts. The ACB convention will be held on July 1 in Schaumberg IL, close to Chicago. The registration fee is $35. There will be virtual information a week prior to the convention. Information will also be available through Alexa or Echo.dot. Our regular meeting will be postponed until July 10 due to the ACB convention taking place on our regular meeting day. Cindy Brooking made a motion that we accept the new meeting date. It was seconded by James Veen. The motion passed. Our state picnic will be held at McCormick’s Creek State Park. The date has not been set yet. (NOTE: After the meeting Rita reserved a shelter at the park for Saturday, September 16.) Submitted by Denise Mullis, secretary