Holier than Thou: Stigma and the Kokuas of the Kalaupapa Settlement

This paper examines the intimate connection between stigmatization and concepts of race surrounding leprosy in 19th century Hawaii. This connection is revealed by consideration of the contrasting treatment of Father Damien and Native Hawaiian kokuas at the Moloka‘i settlement in the Western media. Demonstrating how prevailing prejudices affect stigmatization

Cloning and Sequencing of a Cellobiohydrolase Gene from Trichoderma harzianum FP108

A cbh1 cellobiohydrolase gene was cloned and sequenced from the fungus Trichoderma harzianum FP108. The cloning was performed by PCR amplification of T. harzianum genomic DNA, using PCR primers whose sequence was based on the cbh1 gene from Trichoderma reesei. The 3\u27 end of the gene was isolated by inverse PCR; attempts to clone regions upstream of the 5\u27 end of the gene were unsuccessful. Sequence comparisons suggest that this gene is closely related to cbb1 genes from other Trichoderma species. In particular, all catalytically important amino acids in the protein sequence deduced from the T harzianum cbb1 gene are conserved between species

A Wholesome Horror: The Stigmas of Leprosy in 19th Century Hawaii

The village of Kalaupapa on Moloka'i is well known as the site of legally enforced exile for people in Hawaii with the disease of leprosy. Hawaii was the first nation in the world to institute such a treatment. Less well understood are the social influences that were seen to justify such a harsh treatment of so vulnerable a group of people. Race (and racism) was one influence, as was the fear of contagion. But equally significant was the social stigma produced by Western perceptions of the bodily differences of people with leprosy. Evidence from the Western press shows that the stigma produced by the perceived 'loathsomeness' of the symptoms of leprosy was a prime factor in the exile law. That stigma directly harmed not only people with leprosy, but also their friends and family who supported them