The purpose with this study is to identify and explore how auditors proceed when acquiring knowledge about a company’s environment; and which difficulties that arise when acquiring this knowledge. A qualitative research method has been used to do this study and eight auditors have been interviewed. The risks in a company depend on which industry the company operates within. Therefore, it is very important that an auditor has an understanding of the whole company. ISA 315 requires an auditor to have an understanding of a company and its environment. This understanding will affect the auditor’s risk assessments during audit process. This study shows that interviews with the clients is an important information source when the auditors want to have knowledge about a company’s environment. Other information sources the auditors in this study use are different media sources, colleagues and key ratios. One difficulty with acquiring knowledge about a company’s environment is according to the respondents that it is hard to get a whole picture of a company. Another difficulty is that it might be hard for the auditors to know when they have enough information about a company’s environment; information that makes it possible to do accurate risk assessments.

Made available in DSpace on 2014-06-11T19:32:53Z (GMT). No. of bitstreams: 0 Previous issue date: 2011-02-25Bitstream added on 2014-06-13T19:43:43Z : No. of bitstreams: 1 federicirodriguez_mt_dr_jabo.pdf: 2411830 bytes, checksum: 75b14273eb9f16da6c18c46ba363a68d (MD5) / Coordenação de Aperfeiçoamento de Pessoal de Nível Superior (CAPES) / Foi construído um microarranjo com as 2600 ORFs identificadas no projeto de sequenciamento da bactéria Xylella fastidiosa estirpe 9a5c, e utilizado para analisar diferenças na expressão gênica global da bactéria dentro de uma laranja doce suscetível (Pera) e uma tolerante (cultivar Navelina ISA 315). Foram achados mais genes diferencialmente expressos envolvidos na degradação, reguladores, componentes de membrana, adesinas tipo fímbrias, transportadores, elementos genéticos móveis e genes de patogenicidade na variedade sintomática. Assim, na cultivar Navelina ISA 315, foram diferencialmente expressos mais genes relacionados com a resposta ao estresse, seja detoxificação de espécies reativas do oxigênio ou proteínas chaperonas, assim como uma adesina do tipo hemaglutinina. Isso sugere diferenças na agregação celular e composição do biofilme assim como um maior estresse da bactéria na cultivar tolerante, provocado pelas próprias defesas da planta ou por microrganismos endofíticos que estão competindo com a X. fastidiosa. A técnica de microarranjos foi validada pela RT-qPCR, e apresentou-se como uma ferramenta poderosa na análise das mudanças na expressão gênica da bactéria X. fastidiosa em plantas de laranja doce in vivo, apresentando uma visão mais real da natureza do que os sistemas in vitro, que não a conseguem imitar completamente. Foram levantadas neste trabalho algumas hipóteses sobre os mecanismos de patogenicidade mas no entanto, mais pesquisas ainda são necessárias para lograr melhor compreensão dos mecanismos de patogenicidade e das interações patógeno-hospedeiro / A DNA microarray was constructed containing 2600 ORFs identified by the Genome sequencing project of Xylella fastidiosa 9a5c strain, and used to check global gene expression differences in the bacteria within a susceptible and a tolerant sweet orange plant, the variety Pera and the cultivar Navelina ISA 315, respectively. More genes related to degradation, regulation, membrane components, fimbrial adhesins, transport, genetic mobile elements and patogenicity genes were differentially expressed in Pera variety. On the other hand, in the cultivar Navelina ISA 315, more genes related to stress response, detoxification of oxygen reactive species or other substances, “heat shock” proteins, as well as an adhesin of the hemagglutinin type, suggesting differences in cellular aggregation and biofilm composition, as well as a higher estress of the bacteria in tolerant cultivar, produced either by plant defenses or by endophitic microorganisms which are competing with X. fastidiosa. This “handmade” DNA microchip was validated by RT-qPCR, and has revealed as a powerful technique for the analysis of global changes in gene expression of X. fastidiosa in sweet orange plants in vivo, generating a more real image of what is happening in nature than in vitro systems which would never reproduce nature conditions exactly. Some hypotheses were raised in this study about patogenicity mechanisms, therefore, more research is still necessary to achieve a better understanding of pathogenicity mechanisms and host-pathogen interactions

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Bolagsstyrningen har förändrats på grund av vissa negativa företagshändelser som inträffade under 2000-talet. Det har blivit ett större fokus på internkontroll och etik. Som ett led i detta har även betydelsen av internrevision ökat. För att öka effektiviteten och kvaliteten på revisionen måste en samverkan mellan interna och externa revisorer äga rum. Förhållandet mellan parterna är avgörande för att fastställa styrningen av företaget. Denna bakgrund ledde oss fram till uppsatsens syfte som är att undersöka hur den externa revisionen påverkas av internrevision sett utifrån en externrevisors perspektiv. För att besvara uppsatsens frågeställningar har en kvalitativ fallstudie använts. Semistrukturerade intervjuer genomfördes med fem externa revisorer för insamlandet av data. Från fallstudien framkom det att internrevisionen påverkar externa revisorer. Ytterligare visade studien att det sker ett samarbete mellan den interna och externa revisionen. En bra internrevision leder till ett mer effektivt arbetssätt samt en mindre riskfylld revision. Resultatet som framkom i studien visar att externa revisorer använder den interna revisionens underlag om den bedöms som tillförlitlig. Samarbetet mellan revisorerna bidrar till en mer effektiv revision.

IT-utvecklingen har förändrat företags sätt att bedriva verksamheter och den snabba förändringen som följer med IT-utvecklingen har haft en betydande inverkan på revisionsbranschen. Enligt ISA 315 behöver revisorer ha en bred förståelse för företagets IT-miljö för att kunna genomföra en noggrann revision. Samtidigt finns det en potential för revisorn att använda automatiserade verktyg och tekniker för att förbättra både kvaliteten och effektiviteten i revisionsprocessen. Det är därför avgörande att revisorer inte bara utökar sina IT-kompetenser utan också använder dessa automatiserade verktyg och tekniker på ett effektivt sätt för att möta de utmaningar och krav som följer med den moderna revisionen. Syfte: Med anledning av de nya kraven som ställs på revisorn i ISA 315 syftar vår studie till att ge oss en förståelse om vilka utmaningar och möjligheter revisorer möter under revisionsprocessen när det gäller identifiering och bedömning av IT-relaterade risker av det reviderade företaget. Metod: För att uppfylla studiens syfte genomfördes en kvalitativ forskningsmetod, en kombination av kvalitativa intervjuer och en dokumentstudie. Genom att använda dessa metoder samlades data in och insikter erhölls om de utmaningar och möjligheter som revisorer står inför vid identifiering och bedömning av IT-relaterade risker under revisionsprocessen. Resultat: Studiens slutsatser indikerar att revisorer står inför utmaningar när det gäller att förstå och anpassa sig till kraven i ISA 315, vilket kräver en djup förståelse av företagets IT-miljö och investering av tid och resurser för att utföra en grundlig revision. Revisorer behöver öka sin IT-kompetens och uppdatera sina kunskaper för att kunna utföra avancerade analyser med hjälp av automatiserade verktyg och tekniker. Vidare understryks betydelsen av professionell skepticism och behovet av att kombinera IT-kompetens med en djupare förståelse av företagets IT-miljö för att utföra en effektiv revision. Slutligen identifieras användningen av automatiserade verktyg och tekniker som en möjlighet för revisorer att hantera utmaningar i den snabbt föränderliga teknologiska miljön, vilket kan förbättra revisionens kvalitet och effektivitet. / IT development has transformed how companies conduct their operations, and the rapid changes accompanying IT development have had a significant impact on the auditing industry. According to ISA 315, auditors need to have a comprehensive understanding of a company's IT environment to perform a meticulous audit. Simultaneously, there is potential for auditors to leverage automated tools and techniques to enhance both the quality and efficiency of the audit process. It is therefore crucial for auditors not only to expand their IT competencies but also to utilize these automated tools and techniques effectively in order to address the challenges and requirements associated with modern auditing. Purpose: With reference to the new requirements imposed on auditors in ISA 315, our study aims to provide us with an understanding of the challenges and opportunities auditors encounter during the audit process regarding the identification and assessment of IT-related risks of the audited company. Method: To fulfill the purpose of the study, a qualitative research methodology was employed, using a combination of qualitative interviews and document analysis. These methods were used to collect data and gain insights into the challenges and opportunities faced by auditors in identifying and assessing IT-related risks during the audit process. Results: The study's findings indicate that auditors face challenges in understanding and adapting to the requirements of ISA 315, which necessitates a deep understanding of the company's IT environment and investment of time and resources to perform a thorough audit. Auditors need to enhance their IT competence and update their knowledge to conduct advanced analyses using automated tools and techniques. Furthermore, the importance of professional skepticism is emphasized, along with the need to combine IT competence with a deeper understanding of the company's IT environment to carry out an effective audit. Lastly, the use of automated tools and techniques is identified as an opportunity for auditors to address challenges in the rapidly changing technological landscape, enhancing the quality and efficiency of the audit process.

Resumo: Foi construído um microarranjo com as 2600 ORFs identificadas no projeto de sequenciamento da bactéria Xylella fastidiosa estirpe 9a5c, e utilizado para analisar diferenças na expressão gênica global da bactéria dentro de uma laranja doce suscetível (Pera) e uma tolerante (cultivar Navelina ISA 315). Foram achados mais genes diferencialmente expressos envolvidos na degradação, reguladores, componentes de membrana, adesinas tipo fímbrias, transportadores, elementos genéticos móveis e genes de patogenicidade na variedade sintomática. Assim, na cultivar Navelina ISA 315, foram diferencialmente expressos mais genes relacionados com a resposta ao estresse, seja detoxificação de espécies reativas do oxigênio ou proteínas chaperonas, assim como uma adesina do tipo hemaglutinina. Isso sugere diferenças na agregação celular e composição do biofilme assim como um maior estresse da bactéria na cultivar tolerante, provocado pelas próprias defesas da planta ou por microrganismos endofíticos que estão competindo com a X. fastidiosa. A técnica de microarranjos foi validada pela RT-qPCR, e apresentou-se como uma ferramenta poderosa na análise das mudanças na expressão gênica da bactéria X. fastidiosa em plantas de laranja doce in vivo, apresentando uma visão mais real da natureza do que os sistemas in vitro, que não a conseguem imitar completamente. Foram levantadas neste trabalho algumas hipóteses sobre os mecanismos de patogenicidade mas no entanto, mais pesquisas ainda são necessárias para lograr melhor compreensão dos mecanismos de patogenicidade e das interações patógeno-hospedeiro / Abstract: A DNA microarray was constructed containing 2600 ORFs identified by the Genome sequencing project of Xylella fastidiosa 9a5c strain, and used to check global gene expression differences in the bacteria within a susceptible and a tolerant sweet orange plant, the variety Pera and the cultivar Navelina ISA 315, respectively. More genes related to degradation, regulation, membrane components, fimbrial adhesins, transport, genetic mobile elements and patogenicity genes were differentially expressed in Pera variety. On the other hand, in the cultivar Navelina ISA 315, more genes related to stress response, detoxification of oxygen reactive species or other substances, "heat shock" proteins, as well as an adhesin of the hemagglutinin type, suggesting differences in cellular aggregation and biofilm composition, as well as a higher estress of the bacteria in tolerant cultivar, produced either by plant defenses or by endophitic microorganisms which are competing with X. fastidiosa. This "handmade" DNA microchip was validated by RT-qPCR, and has revealed as a powerful technique for the analysis of global changes in gene expression of X. fastidiosa in sweet orange plants in vivo, generating a more real image of what is happening in nature than in vitro systems which would never reproduce nature conditions exactly. Some hypotheses were raised in this study about patogenicity mechanisms, therefore, more research is still necessary to achieve a better understanding of pathogenicity mechanisms and host-pathogen interactions / Orientador: Eliana Gertrudes de Macedo Lemos / Coorientador: Jackson Antonio Marcondes de Souza / Banca: Marcos Antonio Machado / Banca: Marcelo Luiz de Laia / Banca: Jesus Aparecido Ferro / Banca: Lucia Maria Carareto Alves / Doutor