We consider how the growth of total factor productivity (TFP) was affected by R&D, trade, information and communication technology, and catching-up for the period from 1990 to 2006. Our contributions are: Firstly, to decompose TFP growth into two distinct measures for catching-up and for innovation using the Malmquist index; secondly, to update related investigations. Summarizing our findings, catching-up effects are statistically important, whereas frontier shifts tend to be smaller with increasing distance to the frontier, and large differences exist and persist between sectors and countries.

iIn the study described here, we successfully developed a transformation system for halo(alkali)philic members of the Archaea. This transformation system comprises a series of Natrialba magadii/Escherichia coli shuttle vectors based on a modified method to transform halophilic members of the Archaea and genomic elements of the N. magadii virus Ch1. The shuttle vector pRo-5, based on the repH-containing region of Ch1, stably replicated in E. coli and N. magadii and in several halophilic and haloalkaliphilic members of the Archaea not transformable so far. The Ch1 operon ORF53/ORF54 (repH) was essential for pRo-5 replication and was thus identified as the minimal replication origin. The plasmid allowed homologous and heterologous gene expression, as exemplified by the expression of Ch1 ORF34 52 , which encodes a structural protein, and the reporter gene bgaH of Haloferax lucentense in N. magadii. The new transformation/vector system will facilitate genetic studies within N. magadii and other haloalkaliphilic archaea and will allow the detailed characterization of the gene functions of N. magadii virus Ch1 in their extreme environments.

No abstract