Digital Commons Network^™

A Signal-Substrate Match In The Substrate-Borne Component Of A Multimodal Courtship Display, Damian O. Elias, Andrew C. Mason, Eileen Hebets

Eileen Hebets Publications

The environment can impose strong limitations on the efficacy of signal transmission. In particular, for vibratory communication, the signaling environment is often extremely heterogeneous at small scales. Nevertheless, natural selection is expected to select for signals well-suited for effective transmission. Here, we test for substrate-dependent signal efficacy in the wolf spider Schizocosa stridulans Stratton 1991. We first explore the transmission characteristics of this important signaling modality by playing recorded substrate-borne signals through three different substrates (leaf litter, pine litter, and red clay) and measuring the propagated signal. We found that the substrate-borne signal of S. stridulans attenuates the least on …

Multimodal Courtship Efficacy Of Schizocosa Retrorsa Wolf Spiders: Implications Of An Additional Signal Modality, Aaron S. Rundus, Roger D. Santer, Eileen Hebets

Eileen Hebets Publications

Here, we simultaneously examine both content and efficacy-based sources of selection on the visual and seismic multimodal courtship display of the wolf spider Schizocosa retrorsa. Immature field-collected S. retrorsa were reared in the laboratory on either high-quantity diet (HD) or low-quantity diet (LD) treatments. On maturation, females of each diet treatment were run in simultaneous mate choice trials with both a HD and an LD male (content-based selection). Simultaneous mate choice trials were conducted across different signaling environments (efficacy-based selection) in a fully crossed 2 × 2 design with visual treatments of light/dark (visual signal present/absent) and seismic treatments …

Mate Choice And Learning, Eileen Hebets, Laura Sullivan-Beckers

Eileen Hebets Publications

While an individual’s genetic framework is a major contributor in determining its eventual mate choice, the role of the environment in further influencing mating decisions has long been recognized. Animals gather information from the environment throughout life, and in some cases, may apply this information to increase their odds of obtaining a high-quality mate. In short, these individuals learn. Moreover, such learning can have a social component. “Social learning” is a general term that describes any learning based on observing, interacting with, and/or imitating others in a social context. Social learning can transmit information vertically, generation to generation (e.g., parent …

Nm23-H1 Can Induce Cell Cycle Arrest And Apoptosis In B Cells, Tathagata Choudhuri, Masanao Murakami, Rajeev Kaul, Sushil K. Sahu, Suchitra Mohanty, Subhash C. Verma, Pankaj Kumar, Erle S. Robertson

School of Biological Sciences: Faculty Publications

Nm23-H1 is a well-known tumor metastasis suppressor, which functions as a nucleoside-diphosphate kinase converting nucleoside diphosphates to nucleoside triphosphates with an expense of ATP. It regulates a variety of cellular activities, including proliferation, development, migration and differentiation known to be modulated by a series of complex signaling pathway. Few studies have addressed the mechanistic action of Nm23-H1 in the context of these cellular processes. To determine the downstream pathways modulated by Nm23-H1, we expressed Nm23-H1 in a Burkitt lymphoma derived B-cell line BJAB and performed pathway specific microarray analysis. The genes with significant changes in expression patterns were clustered in …

Increased Dendrite Branching In Aβpp/Ps1 Mice And Elongation Of Dendrite Arbors By Fasudil Administration, Brian A. Couch, George J. Demarco, Shannon L. Gourley, Anthony J. Koleske

School of Biological Sciences: Faculty Publications

Amyloid-β (Aβ) overproduction and dendrite arbor atrophy are hallmarks of Alzheimer’s disease. The RhoA GTPase (Rho) signals through Rho kinase (ROCK) to control cytoskeletal dynamics and regulate neuron structure. Hyperactive Rho signaling destabilizes neurons leading to dendritic regression that can be rescued by genetic or pharmacological reduction of ROCK signaling. To understand what effect reduced ROCK signaling has on the dendrite arbors of mice that overproduce Aβ, we administered the ROCK inhibitor fasudil to AβPP/PS1 transgenic mice. We report that increased dendrite branching occurs in AβPP/PS1 mice and that fasudil promotes …

The Abl And Arg Non-Receptor Tyrosine Kinases Regulate Different Zones Of Stress Fiber, Focal Adhesion, And Contractile Network Localization In Spreading Fibroblasts, Justin G. Peacock, Brian A. Couch, Anthony J. Koleske

School of Biological Sciences: Faculty Publications

Directed cell migration requires precise spatial control of F-actin-based leading edge protrusion, focal adhesion (FA) dynamics, and actomyosin contractility. In spreading fibroblasts, the Abl family kinases, Abl and Arg, primarily localize to the nucleus and cell periphery, respectively. Here we provide evidence that Abl and Arg exert different spatial regulation on cellular contractile and adhesive structures. Loss of Abl function reduces FA, F-actin, and phosphorylated myosin light chain (pMLC) staining at the cell periphery, shifting the distribution of these elements more to the center of the cell than in wild-type (WT) and arg^—/— cells. Conversely, loss of Arg function …

Mitochondrial-Nuclear Epistasis Affects Fitness Within Species But Does Not Contribute To Fixed Incompatibilities Between Species Of Drosophila, Kristi L. Montooth, Colin D. Meiklejohn, Dawn N. Abt, David M. Rand

School of Biological Sciences: Faculty Publications

Efficient mitochondrial function requires physical interactions between the proteins encoded by the mitochondrial and nuclear genomes. Co-evolution between these genomes may result in the accumulation of incompatibilities between divergent lineages. We test whether mitochondrialnuclear incompatibilities have accumulated within the Drosophila melanogaster species subgroup by combining divergent mitochondrial and nuclear lineages and quantifying the effects on relative fitness. Precise placement of nine mtDNAs from D. melanogaster, D. simulans and D. mauritiana into two D. melanogaster nuclear genetic backgrounds reveals significant mitochondrial-nuclear epistasis affecting fitness in females. Combining the mitochondrial genomes with three different D. melanogaster X chromosomes reveals significant epistasis …

Synaptic Clustering Of Psd-95 Is Regulated By C-Abl Through Tyrosine Phosphorylation, Karen Perez De Arce, Lorena Varela-Nallar, Olivia Farias, Alejandra Cifuentes, Paulina Bull, Brian A. Couch, Anthony J. Koleske, Nibaldo C. Inestrosa, Alejandra R. Alvarez

School of Biological Sciences: Faculty Publications

The c-Abl tyrosine kinase is present in mouse brain synapses, but its precise synaptic function is unknown. We found that c-Abl levels in the rat hippocampus increase postnatally, with expression peaking at the first postnatal week. In 14 d in vitro hippocampal neuron cultures, c-Abl localizes primarily to the postsynaptic compartment, in which it colocalizes with the postsynaptic scaffold protein postsynaptic density protein-95 (PSD-95) in apposition to presynaptic markers. c-Abl associates with PSD-95, and chemical or genetic inhibition of c-Abl kinase activity reduces PSD-95 tyrosine phosphorylation, leading to reduced PSD-95 clustering and reduced synapses in treated neurons. c-Abl can phosphorylate …

Genetic Conflict And Sex Chromosome Evolution, Colin D. Meiklejohn, Yun Tao

School of Biological Sciences: Faculty Publications

Chromosomal sex determination systems create the opportunity for the evolution of selfish genetic elements that increase the transmission of one sex chromosome at the expense of its homolog. Because such selfish elements on sex chromosomes can reduce fertility and distort the sex ratio of progeny, unlinked suppressors are expected to evolve, bringing different regions of the genome into conflict over the meiotic transmission of the sex chromosomes. Here we argue that recurrent genetic conflict over sex chromosome transmission is an important evolutionary force that has shaped a wide range of seemingly disparate phenomena including the epigenetic regulation of genes expressed …

Compositions And Methods For Controlling Plant Parasitic Nematodes, Harold N. Trick, Judith L. Roe, Timothy C. Todd, Michael A. Herman

School of Biological Sciences: Faculty Publications

The present invention relates to compositions and methods for controlling nematode infestation of plants. In particular, the present invention provides vectors comprising sequences designed to control nematodes by RNA interference (RNAi) and transgenic plants transformed with Such vectors.

Challenges And Counter Challenges In Hiv/Aids, Qingsheng Li, Charles Wood

Qingsheng Li Publications

Since the beginning of the HIV/AIDS pandemic, there has been significant progress in combating the virus. In addition to identifying HIV,¹ scientists have developed an array of antiretroviral drugs and successfully converted the once deadly disease into a treatable and chronic condition.² Nevertheless, this battle is far from over and HIV still outsmarts humans in multiple ways and poses tremendous challenges. Within this context, the Chinese Medical Journal has timely published this special issue on HIV/AIDS, highlighting the ongoing challenges posed by HIV and potential solutions to these problems. The most daunting challenge is to develop prophylactic measures …

Molecular Basis Of A Novel Adaptation To Hypoxic-Hypercapnia In A Strictly Fossorial Mole, Kevin L. Campbell, Jay F. Storz, Anthony V. Signore, Hideaki Moriyama, Kenneth C. Catania, Alexander P. Payson, Joseph Bonaventura, Jörg Stetefeld, Roy E. Weber

Jay F. Storz Publications

Background: Elevated blood O₂ affinity enhances survival at low O₂ pressures, and is perhaps the best known and most broadly accepted evolutionary adjustment of terrestrial vertebrates to environmental hypoxia. This phenotype arises by increasing the intrinsic O₂ affinity of the hemoglobin (Hb) molecule, by decreasing the intracellular concentration of allosteric effectors (e.g., 2,3-diphosphoglycerate; DPG), or by suppressing the sensitivity of Hb to these physiological cofactors.

Results: Here we report that strictly fossorial eastern moles (Scalopus aquaticus) have evolved a low O₂ affinity, DPG-insensitive Hb - contrary to expectations for a mammalian species that is …

Phenotypic Plasticity And Genetic Adaptation To High-Altitude Hypoxia In Vertebrates, Jay F. Storz, Graham R. Scott, Zachary A. Cheviron

Jay F. Storz Publications

High-altitude environments provide ideal testing grounds for investigations of mechanism and process in physiological adaptation. In vertebrates, much of our understanding of the acclimatization response to high-altitude hypoxia derives from studies of animal species that are native to lowland environments. Such studies can indicate whether phenotypic plasticity will generally facilitate or impede adaptation to high altitude. Here, we review general mechanisms of physiological acclimatization and genetic adaptation to high-altitude hypoxia in birds and mammals. We evaluate whether the acclimatization response to environmental hypoxia can be regarded generally as a mechanism of adaptive phenotypic plasticity, or whether it might sometimes represent …

Genetic Differences In Hemoglobin Function Between Highland And Lowland Deer Mice, Jay F. Storz, Amy M. Runck, Hideaki Moriyama, Roy E. Weber, Angela Fago

Jay F. Storz Publications

In high-altitude vertebrates, adaptive changes in blood–O₂ affinity may be mediated by modifications of hemoglobin (Hb) structure that affect intrinsic O₂ affinity and/or responsiveness to allosteric effectors that modulate Hb–O₂ affinity. This mode of genotypic specialization is considered typical of mammalian species that are high-altitude natives. Here we investigated genetically based differences in Hb–O₂ affinity between highland and lowland populations of the deer mouse (Peromyscus maniculatus), a generalist species that has the broadest altitudinal distribution of any North American mammal. The results of a combined genetic and proteomic analysis revealed that deer mice harbor …

Nebraska Agricultural Water Management Demonstration Network (Nawmdn): Integrating Research And Extension/Outreach, Suat Irmak, Jennifer M. Rees, Gary L. Zoubek, Brandy S. Van Dewalle, William R. Rathje, Rodney Debuhr, Dan Leininger, Darrel D. Siekman, James W. Schneider, Andrew P. Christiansen

Department of Agricultural and Biological Systems Engineering: Faculty Publications

Maximizing the net benefits of irrigated plant production through appropriately designed agricultural water management programs is of growing importance in Nebraska, and other western and Midwestern states, because many areas are involved in management and policy changes to conserve irrigation water. In Nebraska, farmers are being challenged to practice conservation methods and use water resources more efficiently while meeting plant water requirements and maintaining high yields. Another challenge Nebraska experiences in it's approximately 3.5‐million‐ha irrigated lands is limited adoption of newer technologies/tools to help farmers better manage irrigation, conserve water and energy, and increase plant water use efficiency. In 2005, …

Evolutionary Aspects Of Urea Utilization By Fungi, Dhammika H. M. L. P Navarathna, Steven D. Harris, David D. Roberts, Kenneth W. Nickerson

Kenneth Nickerson Papers

The higher fungi exhibit a dichotomy with regard to urea utilization. The hemiascomycetes use urea amidolyase (DUR1,2), whereas all other higher fungi use the nickel-containing urease. Urea amidolyase is an energy-dependent biotincontaining enzyme. It likely arose before the Euascomycete/Hemiascomycete divergence c. 350 million years ago by insertion of an unknown gene into one copy of a duplicated methylcrotonyl CoA carboxylase (MccA). The dichotomy between urease and urea amidolyase coincides precisely with that for the Ni/Co transporter (Nic1p), which is present in the higher fungi that use urease and is absent in those that do not. We suggest that …

Candida Albicans Cellwall Components And Farnesol Stimulate The Expression Of Both Inflammatory And Regulatory Cytokines In The Murine Raw264.7 Macrophage Cell Line, Suman Ghosh, Nina Howe, Katie Volk, Swetha Tati, Kenneth W. Nickerson, Thomas M. Petro

Kenneth Nickerson Papers

Candida albicans causes candidiasis, secretes farnesol, and switches from yeast to hyphae to escape from macrophages after phagocytosis. However, before escape, macrophages may respond to C. albicans’ pathogen-associated molecular patterns (PAMPs) through toll-like receptor 2 (TLR2) and dectin-1 receptors by expressing cytokines involved in adaptive immunity, inflammation, and immune regulation. Therefore, macrophages and the RAW264.7 macrophage line were challenged with C. albicans preparations of live wild-type cells, heat-killed cells, a live mutant defective in hyphae formation, a live mutant producing less farnesol, or an isolate producing farnesoic acid instead of farnesol. Interleukin-6 (IL-6), and IL-1b, IL- 10, and tumor …

No Interaction Between Competition And Herbivory In Limiting Introduced Cirsium Vulgare Rosette Growth And Reproduction, Tomomi  Suwa, Svata M. Louda, F. Leland Russell

Svata M. Louda Publications

Both competition and herbivory have been shown to reduce plant survival, growth, and reproduction. Much less is known about whether competition and herbivory interact in determining plant performance, especially for introduced, weedy plant species in the invaded habitat. We simultaneously evaluated both the main and interactive effects of plant neighbors and insect herbivory on rosette growth and seed reproduction in the year of flowering for Cirsium vulgare (bull thistle, spear thistle), an introduced Eurasian species, in tallgrass prairie in 2 years. Effects of insect herbivory were strong and consistent in both years, causing reduced plant growth and seed production, whereas …

Sirnas Compete With Mirnas For Methylation By Hen1 In Arabidopsis, Bin Yu, Liu Bi, Jixian Zhai, Manu Agarwal, Shengben Li, Qingfa Wu, Shou-Wei Ding, Blake C. Meyers, Hervé Vaucheret, Xuemei Chen

Bin Yu Publications

Plant microRNAs (miRNAs) and small interfering RNAs (siRNAs) bear a 2'-O-methyl group on the 3'-terminal nucleotide. This methyl group is post-synthetically added by the methyltransferase protein HEN1 and protects small RNAs from enzymatic activities that target the 3'-OH. A mutagenesis screen for suppressors of the partial loss-offunction hen1-2 allele in Arabidopsis identified second-site mutations that restore miRNA methylation. These mutations affect two subunits of the DNA-dependent RNA polymerase IV (Pol IV), which is essential for the biogenesis of 24 nt endogenous siRNAs. A mutation in RNA-dependent RNA polymerase 2, another essential gene for the biogenesis of endogenous 24-nt …

Structural Restoration Of Nematodes And Acanthocephalans Fixed In High Percentage Alcohol Using Dess Solution And Rehydration, Soraya Naem, Christopher Pagan, Steven A. Nadler

Harold W. Manter Laboratory of Parasitology: Faculty Publications

Ninety-five percent ethanol is the most widely used field and laboratory preservative for nematodes and other helminth specimens intended for use in molecular systematics. Preservation of nematodes in high-concentration alcohols results in structural dehydration artifacts, including shrinkage and body surface distortions sufficient to obscure features required for morphological identification and analysis, thereby compromising precise morphometrics. However, treating dehydrated nematodes using a solution of DMSO, disodium EDTA, and NaCl, followed by rehydration in water produces marked improvements in specimen shape and surface features, resulting from diffusion of water into the tissues and pseudocoelom as the internal salt concentration is reduced. Following …

Soil-Transmitted Helminthiases: Implications Of Climate Change And Human Behavior, Haylee J. Weaver, John M. Hawdon, Eric P. Hoberg

Harold W. Manter Laboratory of Parasitology: Faculty Publications

Soil-transmitted helminthiases (STHs) collectively cause the highest global burden of parasitic disease after malaria and are most prevalent in the poorest communities, especially in sub-Saharan Africa. Climate change is predicted to alter the physical environment through cumulative impacts of warming and extreme fluctuations in temperature and precipitation, with cascading effects on human health and wellbeing, food security and socioeconomic infrastructure. Understanding how the spectrum of climate change effects will influence STHs is therefore of critical importance to the control of the global burden of human parasitic disease. Realistic progress in the global control of STH in a changing climate requires …

Probing Equilibrium By Nonequilibrium Dynamics: Aging In Co/Cr Superlattices, Tathagata Mukherjee, M. Pleimling, Christian Binek

Christian Binek Publications

Magnetization relaxation is investigated in a structurally ordered magnetic Co/Cr superlattice. Tailored nanoscale periodicity creates mesoscopic spatial magnetic correlations with slow relaxation dynamics when quenching the system into a nonequilibrium state. Magnetization transients are measured after exposing the heterostructure to a magnetic set field for various waiting times. Scaling analysis reveals an asymptotic powerlaw behavior in accordance with a full aging scenario. The temperature dependence of the relaxation exponent shows pronounced anomalies at the equilibrium phase transitions of the antiferromagnetic superstructure and the ferromagnetic to paramagnetic transition of the Co layers. The latter leaves only weak fingerprints in the equilibrium …

Muellerius Capillaris Dominates The Lungworm Community Of Bighorn Sheep At The National Bison Range, Montana, Vanessa O. Ezenwa, Alicia M. Hines, Elizabeth A. Archie, Eric P. Hoberg, Ingrid M. Asmundsson, John T. Hogg

Harold W. Manter Laboratory of Parasitology: Faculty Publications

Lungworm infections are common among bighorn sheep (Ovis canadensis) in North America, and the predominant species reported are Protostrongylus stilesi and P. rushi. The only records of another lungworm species, Muellerius capillaris, infecting bighorns come from South Dakota, USA. At the National Bison Range (NBR), Montana, USA we found that across six sampling periods, 100% of wild bighorn sheep surveyed were passing first-stage dorsal-spined larvae (DSL) which appeared to be consistent with M. capillaris. By contrast, only 39%or fewer sheep were passing Protostrongylus larvae. Using molecular techniques, we positively identified the DSL from the NBR …

A Spirocyclohexyl Nitroxide Amino Acid Spin Label For Pulsed Epr Distance Measurements, Andrzej Rajca, Velavan Kathirvelu, Sandip K. Riy, Maren Pink, Suchada Rajca, Santanu Sarkar, Sandra S. Eaton, Gareth R. Eaton

Andrzej Rajca Publications

Site-directed spin labeling (SDSL) and electron paramagnetic resonance (EPR) spectroscopy offer accurate, sensitive tools for the characterization of structure and function of macromolecules and their assemblies. A new rigid spin label, spirocyclohexyl nitroxide α-amino acid and its N-(9- fluorenylmethoxycarbonyl) (Fmoc) derivative, has been synthesized that exhibit slow enough spin echo dephasing to permit accurate distance measurements by pulse EPR at temperatures up to 125 K in 1:1 water:glycerol and at higher temperatures in matrices with higher glass transition temperatures. Distance measurements in the liquid nitrogen temperature range are less expensive than those that require liquid helium, which will greatly facilitate …

Profess: A Protein Function, Evolution, Structure And Sequence Database, Thomas Triplet, Matthew D. Shortridge, Mark A. Griep, Jaime L. Stark, Robert Powers, Peter Revesz

Robert Powers Publications

The proliferation of biological databases and the easy access enabled by the Internet is having a beneficial impact on biological sciences and transforming the way research is conducted. There are ~1100 molecular biology databases dispersed throughout the Internet. To assist in the functional, structural and evolutionary analysis of the abundant number of novel proteins continually identified from whole-genome sequencing, we introduce the PROFESS (PROtein Function, Evolution, Structure and Sequence) database. Our database is designed to be versatile and expandable and will not confine analysis to a pre-existing set of data relationships. A fundamental component of this approach is the development …

Using Nmr Metabolomics To Investigate Tricarboxylic Acid Cycle-Dependent Signal Transduction In Staphylococcus Epidermidis, Marat R. Sadykov, Bo Zhang, Steven M. Halouska, Jennifer L. Nelson, Lauren W. Kreimer, Yefei Zhu, Robert Powers, Greg A. Somerville

Robert Powers Publications

Staphylococcus epidermidis is a skin-resident bacterium and a major cause of biomaterial-associated infections. The transition from residing on the skin to residing on an implanted biomaterial is accompanied by regulatory changes that facilitate bacterial survival in the new environment. These regulatory changes are dependent upon the ability of bacteria to “sense” environmental changes. In S. epidermidis, disparate environmental signals can affect synthesis of the biofilm matrix polysaccharide intercellular adhesin (PIA). Previously, we demonstrated that PIA biosynthesis is regulated by tricarboxylic acid (TCA) cycle activity. The observations that very different environmental signals result in a common phenotype (i.e. increased PIA …

Solution Structure And Function Of Yndb, An Ahsa1 Protein From Bacillus Subtilis, Jaime L. Stark, Kelly A. Mercier, Geoffrey A. Mueller, Thomas B. Acton, Rong Xiao, Gaetano T. Montelione, Robert Powers

Robert Powers Publications

The solution structure of the Bacillus subtilis protein YndB has been solved using NMR in order to investigate proposed biological functions. The YndB structure exhibits the helix-grip fold, which consists of a β-sheet with two small and one long α-helix, forming a hydrophobic cavity that preferentially binds lipid-like molecules. Sequence and structure comparisons to proteins from eukaryotes, prokaryotes, and archaea suggest that YndB is very similar to the eukaryote protein Aha1, which binds to the middle domain of Hsp90 and induces ATPase activity. Based on these similarities, YndB has been classified as a member of the Activator of Hsp90 ATPase …

New Records Of Bats From The British Virgin Islands, Gary G. Kwiecinski, Jean-Pierre Bacle, Kevel C. Lindsay, Hugh H. Genoways

University of Nebraska State Museum: Mammalogy Papers

As currently understood the bat fauna of the British Virgin Islands consists of five species – Noctilio leporinus, Brachyphylla cavernarum, Artibeus jamaicensis, Tadarida brasiliensis , and Molossus molossus. Our knowledge of distribution of bats in the British Virgin Islands is far more limited than that in the United States Virgin Islands. As part of ongoing research on the bats of the Virgin Islands, recent brief surveying periods in the British Virgin Islands have produced new records for some islands. Also, our researching of existing museum collections has discovered unreported new records. Our new data adds information for five species …

Influence Of Commodity Type, Percentage Of Cracked Kernels, And Wheat Class On Population Growth Of Stored-Product Psocids (Psocoptera: Liposcelidae), Christos G. Athanassiou, George P. Opit, James E. Throne

United States Department of Agriculture-Agricultural Research Service / University of Nebraska-Lincoln: Faculty Publications

Differences in stored-product psocid progeny production as a function of commodity type, percentage of cracked kernels, and wheat class were examined using laboratory bioassays. Population growth of Liposcelis bostrychophila Badonnel, Liposcelis decolor (Pearman), Liposcelis paeta Pearman, and Liposcelis entomophila (Enderlein) (Psocoptera: Liposcelididae) was highest on sorghum Sorghum bicolor (L.) Moench, followed by wheat, Triticum aestivum L., and rice, Oryza sativa L., whereas progeny production was negligible on wheat germ. In a second experiment that did not include L. entomophila, population growth was examined on wheat containing 0, 1, 5, 10, 20, 50, and 100% cracked kernels. Progeny production did …

Current Status And Future Directions Of Precision Aerial Application For Site-Specific Crop Management In The Usa, Yubin Lan, Steven J. Thomson, Yanbo Huang, W. Clint Hoffmann, Huihui Zhang

United States Department of Agriculture-Agricultural Research Service / University of Nebraska-Lincoln: Faculty Publications

The first variable-rate aerial application system was developed about a decade ago in the USA and since then, aerial application has benefitted from these technologies. Many areas of the United States rely on readily available agricultural airplanes or helicopters for pest management, and variable-rate aerial application provides a solution for applying field inputs such as cotton growth regulators, defoliants, and insecticides. In the context of aerial application, variable-rate control can simply mean terminating spray over field areas that do not require inputs, terminating spray near pre-defined buffer areas determined by Global Positioning, or applying multiple rates to meet the variable …