Supersymmetrie (SUSY) ist eine der am besten motivierten Erweiterungen des Standardmodells, und Suchen nach Hinweisen auf Supersymmetrie am LHC sind ein wichtiger Beitrag zum Verständnis von neuer Physik. Das Thema dieser Doktorarbeit ist die Analyse von zwei SUSY-Szenarien unter Verwendung von 20.3 fb−1 an ATLAS Daten, die bei einer Schwerpunktenergie von 8 TeV aufgezeichnet wurden. Den Hauptteil der Arbeit stellt eine Untersuchung des "Nicht-Universelle Higgs Massen Modells mit Gaugino Mediation" (NUHMG) mit Tau-Sneutrino als NLSP dar. Es wurde gezeigt, dass NUHMG unter Verwendung von Ereignissen ohne Leptonen, mit mehreren Jets, und fehlendem Transversalimpuls zu finden sein müsste. Eine neue Methode zur schnellen Optimierung unter Verwendung von multivariaten Methoden wurde entwickelt und in die Analyse eingebracht. Da kein signikanter Überschuss an Ereignissen in den untersuchten Daten beobachtet wurde, wurden experimentell ausgeschlossene Parameterbereiche des NUHMG-Modells bestimmt (bei einem Konfidenzniveau von 95 Prozent). Hierbei wurden Squark und Gluino Massen unterhalb von 1250 GeV bzw. 1400 GeV ausgeschlossen. Das zweite SUSY-Modell, das in dieser Doktorarbeit untersucht wird, ist das Nicht-Universelle Higgs Massen Modell (NUHM) mit Neutralino als LSP, welches innerhalb der Theorie der “Radiatively Driven Natural SUSY” (RNS) motiviert ist. Eine Datenanalyse mit einer statistischen Kombination von Ereignissen mit 2 bis 4 Leptonen wurde durchgeführt. Da kein signikanter Überschuss von Ereignissen beobachtet wurde, wurden ausgeschlossene Parameterbereiche des RNS-NUHM Modells bestimmt. Der größte Beitrag kommt hierbei von der Analyse mit 3 Leptonen, und es werden Werte von m1/2 / Supersymmetry (SUSY) is one of the best motivated extensions of the Standard Model. The subject of this thesis is the analysis of two SUSY scenarios using 20.3 fb-1 of ATLAS data at 8 TeV center of mass energy. The main topic is a study of the Non-Universal Higgs Masses model with Gaugino mediation and Tau-Sneutrino NLSP (NUHMG). A study showed that NUHMG can be found using Squark and Gluino production, using final states with zero leptons of transverse momenta higher than 10 GeV, multiple jets and missing transverse energy. A new method for fast optimisation using multivariate techniques was developed for the analysis with 2-6 jets and missing transverse momentum. No significant excess of data has been seen, and 95 percent CL exclusion limits have been set on the model, where Squark and Gluino masses are excluded up to 1250 and 1400 GeV respectively. Second SUSY model studied, is the Non-universal Higgs Masses model with Neutralino LSP (NUHM). It is well motivated in the framework of Radiatively Driven Natural Supersymmetry (RNS). A data analysis using a statistical combination of 2, 3 and 4 leptons has been performed. No significant excess of data has been observed, and 95 percent CL exclusion limits have been set. They reach up to 300 GeV in m1/2, and extend up to the highest tested value of μ = 500 GeV. In addition to physics analyses, a program developed for online monitoring of the ATLAS trigger, called Trigger Presenter (TriP), is described in this thesis.

In der vorliegenden Arbeit wurden Tumorimpfstoffe auf der Basis des Plasmid-Vektors pCI, modified vaccinia virus Ankara (MVA) und MVA-infizierten dendritischen Zellen entwickelt und durch Sequenzierung, Western blotting und durchflußzytometrische Analyse überprüft. Die in vivo Wirksamkeit der Vakzinen wurde in verschiedenen Tumormodellen in C57BL/6 Mäusen verglichen. Die auf dem eukaryotischen Expressionsvektor pCI basierende DNA-Vakzinierung induzierte einen sehr wirksamen, antigenspezifischen und langfristigen Schutz vor Muzin, CEA oder beta-Galactosidase exprimierenden Tumoren. Eine MVA-Vakzinierung bietet in den in dieser Arbeit durchgeführten Tumormodellen keinen signifikanten Schutz vor Muzin oder beta-Galactosidase exprimierenden Tumoren. <br /> <br /> Sowohl humane, als auch murine in vitro generierte dendritische Zellen lassen sich mit MVA &ndash; im Vergleich zu anderen viralen Vektoren &ndash; sehr gut infizieren. Die Expressionsrate der eingefügten Gene ist aber gering im Vergleich zur Expression in permissiven Wirtszellen des Virus (embryonale Hühnerfibroblasten). Es konnte gezeigt werden, daß eine MVA-Infektion dendritischer Zellen ähnliche Auswirkungen auf den Reifezustand humaner und muriner dendritischer Zellen hat, wie eine Infektion mit replikationskompetenten Vakzinia-Stämmen, und außerdem die Hochregulation von CD40 während der terminalen Reifung von murinen dendritischen Zellen inhibiert wird. Die während der langfristigen in vitro Kultur auf CEF-Zellen entstandenen Deletionen im MVA Genom führten zu einer starken Attenuierung und dem Verlust einiger Gene, die immunmodulatorische Proteine kodieren, jedoch nicht zu einer Verminderung des zytopathischen Effekts in dendritischen Zellen. <br /> <br /> Die geringe Expressionsrate und die beobachtete Inhibition der Expression kostimulatorischer Moleküle auf dendritischen Zellen kann für eine wenig effektive Induktion einer Immunantwort in MVA vakzinierten Tieren durch cross priming oder die direkte Infektion antigenpräsentierender Zellen verantwortlich sein.<br /> <br /> Durch die Modifikation einer Methode zur intrazellulären IFN-gamma Färbung konnten in vakzinierten Mäusen tumorantigenspezifische CTL sensitiv und quantitativ detektiert werden. Die so bestimmte CTL-Frequenz, nicht jedoch die humorale Antwort, korrelierte mit der in vivo Wirksamkeit der verschiedenen Vakzinen: DNA vakzinierte Tiere entwickeln starke tumorantigenspezifische CTL-Antworten, wohingegen in MVA-vakzinierten Tieren überwiegend gegen virale Epitope gerichtete CD4 und CD8-T-Zellen detektiert wurden.<br /> <br /> Die Wirksamkeit der pCI-DNA-Vakzine spricht für die Weiterentwicklung in weiteren präklinischen Mausmodellen, beispielsweise unter Verwendung von MUC1 oder HLA-A2 transgenen Mäusen. Die Methoden zur Detektion Tumorantigen-spezifischer CTL in 96-Loch-Mikrotiterplatten können dabei zur systematischen Suche nach im Menschen immundominanten T-Zell-Epitopen im Muzin-Molekül genutzt werden. <br /> <br /> Der durchgeführte Vergleich der auf den Vektoren pCI und MVA basierenden Vakzinen und die Analyse neuerer Publikationen führen zu dem Ergebniss, daß vor allem DNA-Vakzinen in Zukunft eine wichtige Rolle bei der Entwicklung von aktiven Tumorimpfstoffen spielen werden. Rekombinante MVA-Viren, eventuell in Kombination mit DNA- oder anderen Vektoren, haben sich dagegen in zahlreichen Studien als wirksame Impfstoffe zur Kontrolle von durch Pathogene hervorgerufenen Infektionserkrankungen erwiesen. / In this study, tumor vaccines based on the plasmid pCI, the attenuated vaccinia virus strain modified vaccinia virus Ankara (MVA) and MVA-infected dendritic cells were constructed and characterized by sequencing, Western blot and flow cytometric analysis. The efficiency to induce tumor immunity in vivo was compared in several C57BL/6 mouse tumor models. Naked DNA Vaccination based on the eukaryotic expression vector pCI did induce very effective, antigen-specific and long-term protection against tumor cell lines expressing mucin, CEA or beta-Gal whereas MVA vaccination did not elicit protective immunity against Mucin or beta-Gal expressing tumors. MVA does infect human or murine in vitro generated dendritic cells very efficiently compared to other viral vectors, however expression levels of the inserted antigens in dendritic cells are significantly lower than in permissive host cells (chicken embryo fibroblasts). <br /> <br /> It could be shown that the effect of MVA infection on the maturation status of dendritic cells is similar to the effects described for dendritic cells infected with replication competent vaccinia strains. In addition it was shown that the upregulation of the important costimulatory molecule CD40 through LPS stimulation is strongly inhibited in MVA infected cells. During passage in tissue culture, MVA has accumulated a number of large deletions, including a number of immunomodulatory molecules and resulting in a strong attenuation. However the strong cytopathic effect on dendritic cells is maintained. <br /> <br /> The low level of expression and the effect on dendritic cell maturation may be responsible for the failure of MVA to induce tumor immunity through either cross presentation or direct infection of antigen presenting cells.<br /> <br /> To detect and quantify tumor-antigen-specific CTL a method based on intracellular IFN-gamma staining was modified and it could be shown that the cellular &ndash; but not the humoral &ndash; response does correlate with in vivo protection: DNA but not MVA vaccines do induce high levels of tumorantigen-specific CTL whereas MVA-vaccines do induce strong and long lasting CD4 and CD8-T-cell responses against vaccinia antigens. <br /> <br /> The excellent protection induced by pCI-DNA-vaccination in different tumor models does encourage us to further investigate the elicitation of tumor immunity in MUC1 or HLA-A2 transgenic mice. In mice transgenic for human MHC-I, the IFN-gamma staining protocol could be used to systematically screen for mucin T-cell epitopes that are relevant in humans.

The aim of diploma thesis is to evaluate selected company as a whole for its inner purpose. This purpose allocate category value, respectively determination of venture?s market value, which is most often defined as estimated amount for shift assets to the date of evaluation among optional and independent partners. Theoretical part of thesis qualify theoretical problem frame of company valuation. In this part of thesis essential key words, factors and value categories are defined. Part of the problem is also strategic and financial analysis and projection of future reports or financial plan. Last part deals with methods of valuation itself ? methods based on revenue analysis, market and assets. For evaluation purpose has been chosen company BRÁZDA-AUDIT, a. s., which deals with experts activities in field of economics.

This master‘s thesis deals with evaluation efficiency of the company XY. It analyses the company’s development in years 2007 – 2011 by the modern method of economic value added. Based on the recognized results I suggested measures for an improvement present situation of the company for several following years.

In dieser Arbeit wurden Vektorimpfstoffe auf der Basis rekombinanter Vacciniaviren hinsichtlich ihrer Eignung zur Immunisierung gegen Infektionen mit Respiratorischen Synzytialviren (RSV) untersucht. Hierfür standen genetisches Material und Viruspräparationen des Respiratorischen Synzytialvirus des Rindes (BRSV, Stamm Odijk) sowie des Respiratorischen Synzytialvirus des Menschen (HRSV, Subtyp A2) sowie rekombinante Vacciniaviren MVA-HRSV-F bzw. MVA-HRSV-G zur Verfügung. Rekombinante MVA-Viren, welche die Gene der BRSV-Oberflächenproteine G und F (MVA-BRSV-F, MVA-BRSV-G, MVA-BRSV-Gneu), sowie Viren in welchen die Fremdgensequenzen durch Deletion wieder entfernt sind (Revertante Viren MVA-∆BRSV-F und MVA-∆BRSV-G), wurden gentechnologisch hergestellt. Alle rekombinanten MVA-Viren wurden molekular-virologisch charakterisiert und dienten zur Gewinnung und Prüfung von Testimpfstoffen im Tiermodell. Die Untersuchungen zeigen: 1. Alle neu konstruierten rekombinanten MVA-BRSV-Viren produzierten nach Infektion von Zellkulturen die erwünschten Zielantigene, die BRSV-Glykoproteine F und G. Für das durch MVA-Expression hergestellte BRSV-F-Glykoprotein konnte außerdem die biologische Funktionalität in einem Fusionstest in infizierten HeLa-Zellen nachgewiesen werden. 2. Die Charakterisierung der Genome aller MVA-BRSV- sowie MVA-HRSV-Vektorviren bestätigte die exakte Insertion der Fremdgensequenzen im anvisierten Genombereich und zeigte die genetische Stabilität der Virusisolate nach Passagierung. 3. Bei der Untersuchung des Wachstumsverhaltens von MVA-BRSV-F und MVA-BRSV-G zeigte sich die eingeschränkte Vermehrungsfähigkeit des Virus MVA-BRSV-G. Die Konstruktion und Untersuchung der revertanten Viren MVA-∆BRSV-F und MVA-∆BRSV-G belegte die Koproduktion des G-Proteins als Ursache des verminderten Replikationsvermögens. Dieser für ein mögliches Impfvirus erhebliche Nachteil konnte durch die Verwendung eines moderateren Vacciniavirus-Promotors zur Fremdgenexpression (rekombinantes Virus MVA-BRSV-Gneu) behoben werden. 4. Die Prüfung von Testimpfstoffen auf der Grundlage der rekombinanten MVA-HRSV-Viren in einem Maus-HRSV-Infektionsmodell zeigte, dass MVA-HRSV-Impfstoffe, im Gegensatz zu Impfstoffen aus mit Formalin-inaktiviertem HRSV, Immunantworten mit einem ausgewogenen TH1/TH2-assoziierten Zytokinprofil induzierten. Eine infolge von Immunisierung verstärkte Einwanderung eosinophiler Zellen (Marker für Immunpathogenese) in die Lungen HRSV-infizierter Tiere, konnte nach MVA-Impfung nicht beziehungsweise in nur sehr geringem Ausmaß festgestellt werden (OLSZEWSKA et al. 2004). 5. Wichtige erste Daten hinsichtlich der Verträglichkeit, Immunogenität und Schutzwirkung rekombinanter Impfstoffe auf der Basis von MVA-BRSV-F und MVA-BRSV-G konnten in einem Kälber BRSV-Infektionsmodell erhoben werden. Die zweimalige Immunisierung mit MVA-Impfstoff verlief bei allen Tieren ohne feststellbare Nebenwirkungen und die Anregung Vaccinia- bzw. BRSV-F-spezifischer Antikörper bestätigte die Immunogenität der Vektorvakzinen. Schließlich belegten klinische Daten, insbesondere die fehlende Fieberreaktion bei Impflingen nach BRSV-Belastungsinfektion, die Schutzwirkung der MVA-BRSV-Impfstoffe. Insgesamt unterstützen die erzielten Ergebnisse dieser Arbeiten die weitere präklinische und klinische Untersuchung von MVA-Vektorimpfstoffen zur wirksameren und sichereren Bekämpfung von Infektionen mit Respiratorischen Synzytialviren. / This study investigated vector vaccines based on recombinant vaccinia virus MVA for their suitability to immunize against infections with respiratory syncytial viruses. Genetic material and virus stocks of bovine respiratory syncytial virus (BRSV, Strain Odijk) and human respiratory syncytial virus (HRSV, Strain A2) and recombinant vaccinia viruses MVA-HRSV-F and MVA-HRSV-G were provided and used in this study. The project work included the genetical engineering of recombinant MVA expressing gene sequences encoding the BRSV surface proteins G and F (MVA-BRSV-F, MVA-BRSV-G, MVA-BRSV-Gneu) and the secondary generation of mutant viruses in which recombinant gene sequences have been removed (revertant viruses MVA-∆BRSV-F, MVA-∆BRSV-G). All recombinant MVA were carefully characterized in in vitro experiments and served for generation of vaccine preparations being tested in animal model systems. The investigations demonstrate: 1. All recombinant MVA-BRSV viruses produced the target antigens (BRSV-F and -G proteins) upon tissue culture infections. Functional activity of BRSV-F protein was demonstrated in a cell fusion assay using virus-infected HeLa cells. 2. The characterization of the genomes of all MVA recombinant viruses confirmed the correct insertion of foreign gene sequences into the target site of the MVA genome and demonstrated the genetic stability of the vector viruses upon tissue culture passage. 3. In vitro studies on virus growth revealed a reduced replicative capacity of the recombinant virus MVA-BRSV-G. Construction and growth analysis of revertant viruses MVA-∆BRSV-F and MVA-∆BRSV-G demonstrated that over expression of BRSV-G protein caused this replication deficiency which could be avoided by using a more moderate vaccinia virus promoter for transcriptional control of recombinant gene expression (recombinant virus MVA-BRSV-Gneu). 4. Upon characterization in a mouse-HRSV challenge model candidate vaccines based on recombinant MVA-HRSV viruses, in contrast to formalin inactivated HRSV, and induced a well balanced TH1 and TH2 cytokine profile. In addition, none of the MVA-HRSV-F vaccinated animals and only two of the MVA-HRSV-G immunized mice showed low-level eosinophilia in the lungs after HRSV challenge infection (OLSZEWSKA et al. 2004). 5. Vaccination experiments in the calf-BRSV challenge model generated first relevant data on safety, immunogenicity and protective capacity of MVA-BRSV recombinant vaccines. The repeated application of MVA vaccine was well tolerated by all vaccinated animals and the induction of vaccinia- and BRSV-F-specific antibody responses confirmed the immunogenicity of the MVA vector vaccines. Moreover, clinical data (lack of fever response in vaccines) suggested the protective capacity of MVA-BRSV immunization upon BRSV challenge. The obtained results from these studies clearly support further preclinical and clinical evaluation of recombinant MVA candidate vaccines to immunize against disease caused by RSV infections in cattle and humans.

No description available.

This project aims to investigate the orientation of plasma jet fronts in Earth's magnetotail using multi-spacecraft measurement data. The orientations are estimated by applying minimum variance analysis (MVA) and multi-spacecraft timing analysis for finding normal vectors to the jet fronts as they pass over the spacecraft. An agreement between the two analysis methods is found when applied to a data set of fronts. The obtained results are compared to measurements of the ion bulk velocities of the fronts, where a discrepancy is found. Limitations of the analysis are addressed and alternative approaches are presented. / I detta projekt undersöks riktningen hos fronter till plasma-jetstrålar i jordens magnetsvans genom analysering av mätdata från en samling rymdfarkoster. Riktningarna uppskattas genom att applicera minimum variance analysis (MVA) samt multi-spacecraft timing för att hitta normalvektorer till fronterna som passerar rymdfarkosterna. De två metoderna uppnår liknande resultat när de tillämpas på en uppsättning fronter. De erhållna normalvektorerna jämförs även med riktningen av uppmätta jonhastigheter från rymdfarkosterna där en tydlig skillnad förekommer. Begränsningar av analysmetoden påpekas och förslag på alternativa tillvägagångssätt läggs fram.

Ce travail de thèse porte sur l'exploitation de la spectroscopie des pertes d'énergie des électrons,(EELS) résolue spatialement pour l'étude de systèmes de dimensions nanométriques. Cette technique étant réalisée avec un microscope électronique en transmission et à balayage, on parle d'expérience STEM-EELS dont le principal avantage est de permettre à la fois une caractérisation morphologique à l'échelle nanométrique et l'accès à une grande variété d'informations sur les propriétés physiques et chimiques des systèmes étudiés. Nous présentons ainsi deux cas d'étude portant sur : des nanobulles d'hélium confinées dans des matrices à base de fer et des nanoparticules métalliques or-argent de structure coeur- coquille. Ces deux études se basent sur le couplage entre imagerie microscopique à l'échelle nanomètrique et spectroscopie EELS en perte proche (Low-loss EELS).La première étude permet de sonder les densités et les pressions des bulles d'hélium en fonction de leur tailles en s'appuyant sur la détection et l'étude, bulle par bulle, du seuil K de l'hélium. Les résultats sont globalement en accord avec d'autres études dans le domaine, mais des densités très basses en hélium (<10 at nmˉ³) ont été mesurées de façon fiable pour la première fois.la deuxième étude concerne l'exploration des propriétés plasmoniques des nanoparticules bimétalliques Au@Ag en sondant les énergies et les localisations des modes plasmon de surface. On trouve un accord excellent entre les expériences et les calculs par éléments finis pour les positions des modes plasmon. La coquille en Ag semble déterminer leurs énergies, avec le coeur en Au ayant apparemment peu d'effet.Une part importante de ce travail concerne le développement des méthodologies d'acquisition et de traitement des données. Tout particulièrement l'utilisation des techniques d'analyses mutivariés (MVA) pour améliorer la détection de l'hélium dans les bulles. / This thesis describes the application of high spatial resolution electron energy-loss spectroscopy (EELS) to the nanometre scale analysis of two rather di#erent types of sam- ple. EELS performed in the scanning transmission electron microscope (STEM) is known as STEM-EELS and offers the possibility of performing morphological characterisations simultaneously with access to a wide variety of information on the physical and chemical properties of the systems under study. Our two areas of study are nano-bubbles of helium in iron-based alloys and core-shell Au-Ag nano-particles. Both systems are studied via electron microscopic imaging and low-loss EELS (i.e. the spectral range below 50 eV). In the first case the helium densities and pressures in the bubbles are measured as a function of their size and the conditions in which they are generated, via the examination of the intensity and spectral position of the He-K excitation. The results are in broad agreement with othe studies in the field, but particularly lowhelium densities (< 10 at nmˉ³) have been reliably measured here for the first time.The second case concerns the exploration of the bi-metallic nano-particles plasmonic properties via the study of the surface plasmon mode energies and spatial localisations. Excellent agreement is found between experiment and finite element calculations for the plasmon modes. The outer Ag shell essentially fixes their energies, the Au core apparently having little effect.An important part of this work concerns the application of novel acquisition and data analysis methods. In particular the use of multivariate statistical analysis (MVA) is shown to facilitate the detection and quantification of helium in the bubbles.

One of the challenges in the structural biological community is processing the wealth of protein data being produced today; therefore, the use of computational tools has been incorporated to speed up and help understand the structures of proteins, hence the functions of proteins. In this thesis, protein structure investigations were made through the use of Multivariate Analysis (MVA), and Fourier Transformed Infrared (FTIR), a form of vibrational spectroscopy. FTIR has been shown to identify the chemical bonds in a protein in solution and it is rapid and easy to use; the spectra produced from FTIR are then analysed qualitatively and quantitatively by using MVA methods, and this produces non-redundant but important information from the FTIR spectra. High resolution techniques such as X-ray crystallography and NMR are not always applicable and Fourier Transform Infrared (FTIR) spectroscopy, a widely applicable analytical technique, has great potential to assist structure analysis for a wide range of proteins. FTIR spectral shape and band positions in the Amide I (which contains the most intense absorption region), Amide II, and Amide III regions, can be analysed computationally, using multivariate regression, to extract structural information. In this thesis Partial least squares (PLS), a form of MVA, was used to correlate a matrix of FTIR spectra and their known secondary structure motifs, in order to determine their structures (in terms of "helix", "sheet", “310-helix”, “turns” and "other" contents) for a selection of 84 non-redundant proteins. Analysis of the spectral wavelength range between 1480 and 1900 cm-1 (Amide I and Amide II regions) results in high accuracies of prediction, as high as R2 = 0.96 for α-helix, 0.95 for β-sheet, 0.92 for 310-helix, 0.94 for turns and 0.90 for other; their Root Mean Square Error for Calibration (RMSEC) values are between 0.01 to 0.05, and their Root Mean Square Error for Prediction (RMSEP) values are between 0.02 to 0.12. The Amide II region also gave results comparable to that of Amide I, especially for predictions of helix content. We also used Principal Component Analysis (PCA) to classify FTIR protein spectra into their natural groupings as proteins of mainly α-helical structure, or protein of mainly β-sheet structure or proteins of some mixed variations of α-helix and β-sheet. We have also been able to differentiate between parallel and anti-parallel β-sheet. The developed methods were applied to characterize the secondary structure conformational changes of an unfolding protein as a function of pH and also to determine the limit of Quantitation (LoQ).Our structural analyses compare highly favourably to those in the literature using machine learning techniques. Our work proves that FTIR spectra in combination with multivariate regression analysis like PCA and PLS, can accurately identify and quantify protein secondary structure. The developed models in this research are especially important in the pharmaceutical industry where the therapeutic effect of drugs strongly depends on the stability of the physical or chemical structure of their proteins targets; therefore, understanding the structure of proteins is very important in the biopharmaceutical world for drugs production and formulation. There is a new class of drugs that are proteins themselves used to treat infectious and autoimmune diseases. The use of spectroscopy and multivariate regression analysis in the medical industry to identify biomarkers in diseases has also brought new challenges to the bioinformatics field. These methods may be applicable in food science and academia in general, for the investigation and elucidation of protein structure.

Philosophiae Doctor - PhD / The value added statement is published by about 200 of the 400 companies listed in the industrial sector on the Johannesburg Stock Exchange. This is the highest incidence of publication of such statements reported to date. It appears from a literature review that the usefulness of the statement has never been tested in depth from the perspective of the users. The importance of this study stems from the increased incidence of publication of the statement in South Africa and the lack of evidence substantiating its usefulness. The study aims to investigate the usefulness of the value added statement in South Africa from the perspective of all the different users of external financial information. The literature review revealed that, although the value added statement is based on the theory of value added and was aimed at broadening the scope of financial reporting, it did not develop to the point of being governed by statutory requirements. This resulted in diverse accounting treatment in the statement and the resultant loss of consistency and comparability, which gave an early indication from the literature that value added statements might not be very useful. The usefulness of the value added statement was evidenced by users actually using the statement and the explanatory and predictive power of value added information. No reliable evidence of users actually using the statement was found in the literature. Evidence was found that value added information had greater predictive and explanatory power than earnings, but these findings were found to be inconclusive. A questionnaire survey among users representing the South African users of external financial reports revealed little evidence of actual use of the value added statement. The general usage trend from past to present, was to use the statement less rather than more. More than fifty percent of the respondents do not intend to use the statement in future, even if the shortcomings experienced could be overcome. The major reason for this lack of support for the value added statement seems to be the shortcomings experienced by the users when publishing and using the statement, which stems mainly from the lack of statutory requirements. Another reason is that the value added statement introduces very little information that is not already available from the other financial statements. The predictive and explanatory power of value added information was examined by doing statistical analysis on empirical data of South African listed companies. This analysis indicated that value added information did not have additional explanatory and predictive power when compared to earnings and that the high inter-correlation between value added and earnings prevented value added from being used in prediction models in combination with earnings. The predictive and explanatory power of value added information is therefore limited. This research study could not find sufficient evidence of the usefulness of value added statements to justify their continued publication, neither could it find significant support for future use. It is therefore suggested that the publication of the statement be discontinued and that additional information be included in the income statement disclosures to accommodate this.