Latest News

DRC Director's Report - January 2021

A recent study by a team of UI researchers led by E. Dale Abel, MD, PhD, Director, FOEDRC discovered eating a ketogenic diet rescued mice from heart failure. 

The study, published in the November issue of the journal Nature Metabolism, was one of three companion papers from independent research teams that all point to the damaging effects of excess sugar (glucose) and its breakdown products on the heart. The UI study also revealed the potential to mitigate that damage by supplying the heart with alternate fuel sources in the form of high-fat diets. 

Given its need for a constant, reliable supply of energy, the heart is very flexible about the type of molecules it can burn for fuel. Most of the heart’s energy comes from metabolizing fatty acids, but heart cells can also burn glucose and lactate, and also ketones. 

DRC Director's Report - December 2020

Dr. Vitor Lira Associate Professor of Health and Human Physiology and member of the FOEDRC was recently awarded a new grant from the National Institutes of Health in the amount of $563,723. The grant entitled: “Molecular regulation of protein turnover in skeletal muscle” will study an important condition that afflicts many individuals as they age, particularly those with diabetes. 

Aging-related skeletal muscle atrophy and weakness, also referred to as sarcopenia, affects millions of people contributing to the development of several chronic conditions associated with poor health outcomes, such as diabetes, cardiovascular diseases and neurodegenerative diseases. Although sarcopenia remains poorly understood and lacks effective therapy, aged muscles manifest a problem of poor protein turnover or recycling which is called proteotoxicity. 

Merry Christmas & Happy New Year from your Grand Presidents!

Brothers and Sisters, 

We’ve almost made it through 2020 and all the chaos this unexpected year has brought us. While the struggles we have faced this year are different than any we have experienced before, we wanted to thank all of our amazing Eagles members for their perseverance, positivity, and adaptability during this time. 

Adjusting to this year has been an exercise in problem solving. As government orders forced the shutdown of many of our Aeries & Auxiliaries, you all persevered, finding new ways to raise funds and handle business despite the limitations placed upon us. 

We were able to raise a grand total of $3,665,516 for the F.O.E. Charity Foundation and its various funds. Past Grand Worthy President Ron Malz raised $83,607.59 for his charity, Confidence Learning Center, while Past Grand Madam President Gloria Williams raised $46,734.96 for the Special Olympics, and an additional $37,986.50 for her other project, the F.O.E. Diabetes Research Center. As your Grand Presidents, we’ve spent our year raising money for the DRC Bridge to the Cure, Camp Civitan, and the Penticton Regional Hospital, and can’t wait to update you on how much we raised during the 2021 Convention in Phoenix, AZ!

PGWP Jerry Sullivan Passes Away at 72

It is with great sadness we must report the passing of Past Grand Worthy President Jerry Sullivan. 

Jerry was a proud and dedicated Eagle who joined the organization as a charter member of Fredericksburg, Va., Aerie #4123 in 1985, where he often served as Santa Claus for the annual Children’s Christmas Party. He continued to serve the Fredericksburg Eagles in various capacities throughout his time as an Eagle and maintained dual memberships at Spotsylvania #4391, Williamsburg #4548, Sunnyslope #2957 and Culpeper #4551. 

In the 90’s, Jerry rose through various local and state level chairs before being installed as the Virginia State Worthy President for the 2002-03 term. 

At the 2007 International Convention in Spokane, Wash., he first became a Grand Aerie Officer, holding the position of Grand Conductor. He progressed through the Grand Aerie for several years before finally reaching the pinnacle of the F.O.E., serving as Grand Worthy President for the 2016-17 term.

DRC Director's Report - November 2020

FOE Diabetes Research Center scientists from the University of Iowa have discovered a safe new way to manage blood sugar non-invasively. Exposing diabetic mice to a combination of static electric and magnetic fields for a few hours per day normalizes two major hallmarks of type 2 diabetes, namely reducing blood glucose levels and preventing insulin resistance. These new findings were published Oct. 6 in Cell Metabolism.

DRC Director's Report - October 2020

Please join us in welcoming Bhagirath Chaurasia, MS, PhD, to the University of Iowa and to the Fraternal Order of Eagles Diabetes Research Center. Dr. Chaurasia also joins the Division of Endocrinology from his previous position as Assistant Professor of Nutrition and Integrative Physiology at the University of Utah. He received his PhD from the University of Cologne in Germany before working as a Postdoctoral Research Fellow at Duke-NUS Medical School in Singapore.

DRC Director's Report - September 2020

Renata Pereira, PhD, Research Assistant Professor of Internal Medicine, Endocrinology and Metabolism, and member of the FOEDRC, is the recipient of a new NIH R01 grant for $1.9M to support her work entitled The role of the integrated stress response in brown adipose tissue-mediated metabolic adaptations. 

“Obesity and related conditions, such as diabetes and heart disease, are some of the greatest health problems affecting today’s society. In an effort to better understand ways in which the body can increase its metabolism to burn fat and prevent the effects of those diseases, Dr. Pereira has focused her studies on special fat cells called brown (or beige) fat cells.

DRC Director's Report - August 2020

The prevalence of obesity continues to increase worldwide due to changes in dietary composition including the addition of sweetners to many food products and evolving patterns of eating behaviors. In particular, excessive consumption of sugars has been linked to metabolic diseases such as diabetes, insulin resistance and type 2 diabetes. 

Fibroblast growth factor 21 (FGF21) is a liver-derived hormone that signals to the brain to reduce sugar intake, but the mechanism for this effect was unknown. This new study by Ph.D. student Sharon Jensen-Cody and other colleagues in the laboratory of Matt Potthoff, Associate Professor in the Fraternal Order of Eagles Diabetes Center and Department of Pharmacology and Neuroscience discovered that FGF21 signals to specific nerve cells called glutamatergic neurons in the brain to lower sugar intake and sweet-taste preference.

DRC Director's Report - July 2020

The greatest risks to long-term health in people with diabetes arise from diabetic complications, particularly cardiovascular disease. However, the mechanisms by which the metabolic changes associated with type 2 diabetes like insulin resistance increases the risk of heart failure are less understood. In a recent publication in JCI Insight, E. Dale Abel, MD, PhD, and other members of the Fraternal Order of Eagles Diabetes Research Center in collaboration with other institutions, have uncovered an important molecular link between diabetes and heart failure.

Reno Suite Upgrade Information

Brothers & Sisters, 

A limited number of suite upgrades are available at the Nugget Casino Resort in Reno for the 2020 F.O.E. Annual Meetings. If you would like to upgrade your room to a larger suite, please coordinate directly with the Nugget Casino Hotel to obtain more information or to reserve a suite.

• Upgrade to Casino Tower Hospitality Suite - +$100/day 
• Upgrade to Resort Tower Petite Suite - +$45/day
• Upgrade to Resort Tower Bar King - +65/day
• Upgrade to Resort Tower Hospitality Suite - +$125/day 
• Bed removal per room/suite - $75 

Anyone contacting the hotel about upgrading to a suite should mention the Fraternal Order of Eagles. Interested parties should contact the Nugget Casino Resort at 1-800-648-1177.