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closeReferee Comments: Referee 1
Posted by PLOS_ONE_Group on 26 Jun 2007 at 13:06 GMT
Reviewer 1's Review
“The ms. reports findings of possible general interest, which were generated by a respectable group of investigators, following up on an interesting and novel idea.
However, there are two major shortcomings that significantly subtract from enthusiasm for this investigation.
1 - there is a lack of clarity of presentation, of familiarizing the reader with the experimental ductus, of explaining the results of the authors' own experiments and, subsequently, of interpreting them in the context of existing knowledge generated by others. In the end: what is the significant advance carried by their study and why does it have general impact ? Apart from the thorough re-write, weeding out minor blemishes, this desired clarity is what is missing in the first place.
2 - the choice of embryonic DRG neurons is not clear to this reviewer. Adult trigeminal or DRG sensory neurons could have been used in dissociated cultures as a cellular model of nociceptive neuron. This has been accomplished by many authors (e.g. Hargreaves, Schaible, Simon and many others) and would have represented a more valid model than the reported embryonic sensory neuron culture.”
N.B. These are the general comments made by the reviewer when reviewing this paper in light of which the manuscript was revised. Specific points addressed during revision of the paper are not shown.