Remote sensing is a useful tool for monitoring spatio-temporal variations of crop morphological and physiological status and supporting practices in precision farming. In comparison with multispectral imaging, hyperspectral imaging is a more advanced technique that is capable of acquiring a detailed spectral response of target features. Due to limited accessibility outside of the scientific community, hyperspectral images have not been widely used in precision agriculture. In recent years, different mini-sized and low-cost airborne hyperspectral sensors (e.g., Headwall Micro-Hyperspec, Cubert UHD 185-Firefly) have been developed, and advanced spaceborne hyperspectral sensors have also been or will be launched (e.g., PRISMA, DESIS, EnMAP, HyspIRI). Hyperspectral imaging is becoming more widely available to agricultural applications. Meanwhile, the acquisition, processing, and analysis of hyperspectral imagery still remain a challenging research topic (e.g., large data volume, high data dimensionality, and complex information analysis). It is hence beneficial to conduct a thorough and in-depth review of the hyperspectral imaging technology (e.g., different platforms and sensors), methods available for processing and analyzing hyperspectral information, and recent advances of hyperspectral imaging in agricultural applications. Publications over the past 30 years in hyperspectral imaging technology and applications in agriculture were thus reviewed. The imaging platforms and sensors, together with analytic methods used in the literature, were discussed. Performances of hyperspectral imaging for different applications (e.g., crop biophysical and biochemical properties’ mapping, soil characteristics, and crop classification) were also evaluated. This review is intended to assist agricultural researchers and practitioners to better understand the strengths and limitations of hyperspectral imaging to agricultural applications and promote the adoption of this valuable technology. Recommendations for future hyperspectral imaging research for precision agriculture are also presented.

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Yersinia pestis is a Gram-negative bacterium that causes plague. After Y. pestis overcomes the skin barrier, it encounters antigen-presenting cells, such as Langerhans and dendritic cells. They transport the bacteria from the skin to the lymph nodes. However, the molecular mechanisms involved in bacterial transmission are unclear. Langerhans cells express Langerin (CD207), a calcium-dependent (C-type) lectin. Furthermore, Y. pestis possesses exposed core oligosaccharides. In this study, we show that Y. pestis invades Langerhans cells and Langerin-expressing transfectants. However, when the bacterial core oligosaccharides are shielded or truncated, Y. pestis propensity to invade Langerhans- and Langerin-expressing cells decreases. Moreover, the interaction of Y. pestis with Langerin-expressing transfectants is inhibited by purified Langerin, a DC-SIGN-like molecule, an anti-CD207 antibody, purified core oligosaccharides and several oligosaccharides. Furthermore, covering core oligosaccharides reduces the mortality associated with murine infection by adversely affecting the transmission of Y. pestis to lymph nodes. These results demonstrate that direct interaction of core oligosaccharides with Langerin facilitates the invasion of Langerhans cells by Y. pestis. Therefore, Langerin-mediated binding of Y. pestis to antigen-presenting cells may promote its dissemination and infection.

Yersinia pestis, a Gram-negative bacterium and the etiologic agent of plague, has evolved from Yersinia pseudotuberculosis, a cause of a mild enteric disease. However, the molecular and biological mechanisms of how Y. pseudotuberculosis evolved to such a remarkably virulent pathogen, Y. pestis, are not clear. The ability to initiate a rapid bacterial dissemination is a characteristic hallmark of Y. pestis infection. A distinguishing characteristic between the two Yersinia species is that Y. pseudotuberculosis strains possess an O-antigen of lipopolysaccharide (LPS) while Y. pestis has lost the O-antigen during evolution and therefore exposes its core LPS. In this study, we showed that Y. pestis utilizes its core LPS to interact with SIGNR1 (CD209b), a C-type lectin receptor on antigen presenting cells (APCs), leading to bacterial dissemination to lymph nodes, spleen and liver, and the initiation of a systemic infection. We therefore propose that the loss of O-antigen represents a critical step in the evolution of Y. pseudotuberculosis into Y. pestis in terms of hijacking APCs, promoting bacterial dissemination and causing the plague.

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In the Changjiang Estuary, interactions between the sea and the river result in the development of a turbidity maximum zone (TMZ). Riverine sediments are an important source for TMZ formation. Since the 1960s, sediment discharge from the river basin to the estuary has decreased due to dam construction, water and soil conservation, and water diversion projects. Thirty-two Landsat images of the estuary, covering the period from 1979 to 2008, were collected to identify the TMZ response to sediment decline. A threshold value of suspended sediment concentration (SSC) of 0.7 kg/m 3 , corresponding to a spectrum reflectance of 5% of Landsat MSS band 7 and 7% of Landsat TM/ETM band 4, was used to identify the Changjiang Estuary TMZ. The TMZ area was then extracted from each image to investigate its temporal and spatial variations during the past 30 years. The images were grouped into five time series; the average TMZ area of each series was estimated. The results show that the TMZ area declined 23% from series (a) to series (e), responding to a 77% reduction in riverine sediment discharge. In addition, the TMZ had strong seasonal and tidal variations; it was generally larger during flood seasons than during dry seasons and during spring tides compared to neap tides. The spring / neap tidal cycle played a more important role in TMZ change than did the seasonal cycle. Due to the continued reduction of sediment discharge to the estuary resulting from dams already constructed and to those that will be constructed upstream in the Changjiang River, it is predicted that the TMZ area will continue decreasing and that the re-suspension of local sediments will play a more important role in the formation of the TMZ.

Salmonella enterica serovar Typhimurium, a Gram-negative bacterium, can cause infectious diseases ranging from gastroenteritis to systemic dissemination and infection. However, the molecular mechanisms underlying this bacterial dissemination have yet to be elucidated. A study indicated that using the lipopolysaccharide (LPS) core as a ligand, S. Typhimurium was able to bind human dendritic cell-specific intercellular adhesion molecule-3-grabbing nonintegrin (hCD209a), an HIV receptor that promotes viral dissemination by hijacking antigen-presenting cells (APCs). In this study, we showed that S. Typhimurium interacted with CD209s, leading to the invasion of APCs and potentially the dissemination to regional lymph nodes, spleen, and liver in mice. Shielding of the exposed LPS core through the expression of O-antigen reduces dissemination and infection. Thus, we propose that similar to HIV, S. Typhimurium may also utilize APCs via interactions with CD209s as a way to disseminate to the lymph nodes, spleen, and liver to initiate host infection.