PONE-D-24-23262Redox cycling of sulfur via microbes in soil boosts the bioavailability of nutrients to Brassica napusPLOS ONE

Dear Dr. Alam,

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Academic Editor

PLOS ONE

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Additional Editor Comments:

Major revision

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Reviewers' comments:

Reviewer's Responses to Questions

Comments to the Author

1. Is the manuscript technically sound, and do the data support the conclusions?

The manuscript must describe a technically sound piece of scientific research with data that supports the conclusions. Experiments must have been conducted rigorously, with appropriate controls, replication, and sample sizes. The conclusions must be drawn appropriately based on the data presented.

Reviewer #1: No

Reviewer #2: Yes

Reviewer #3: Yes

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2. Has the statistical analysis been performed appropriately and rigorously?

Reviewer #1: No

Reviewer #2: No

Reviewer #3: Yes

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3. Have the authors made all data underlying the findings in their manuscript fully available?

The PLOS Data policy requires authors to make all data underlying the findings described in their manuscript fully available without restriction, with rare exception (please refer to the Data Availability Statement in the manuscript PDF file). The data should be provided as part of the manuscript or its supporting information, or deposited to a public repository. For example, in addition to summary statistics, the data points behind means, medians and variance measures should be available. If there are restrictions on publicly sharing data—e.g. participant privacy or use of data from a third party—those must be specified.

Reviewer #1: Yes

Reviewer #2: Yes

Reviewer #3: Yes

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4. Is the manuscript presented in an intelligible fashion and written in standard English?

PLOS ONE does not copyedit accepted manuscripts, so the language in submitted articles must be clear, correct, and unambiguous. Any typographical or grammatical errors should be corrected at revision, so please note any specific errors here.

Reviewer #1: No

Reviewer #2: Yes

Reviewer #3: Yes

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5. Review Comments to the Author

Please use the space provided to explain your answers to the questions above. You may also include additional comments for the author, including concerns about dual publication, research ethics, or publication ethics. (Please upload your review as an attachment if it exceeds 20,000 characters)

Reviewer #1: Redox cycling of sulfur via microbes in soil boosts the bioavailability of nutrients to Brassica napus

# Title: OK

Abstract: Rewriting with numerical details required.

KEYWORDS: Alphabetical rearrangement suggested.

Introduction:

Line 58-62: simple, lucid and complete sentences will be appreciated.

Statement of novelty needed.

2.1 Soil characterization

SRM data need to be disclosed.

Details of studied crop required.

2.8 Analysis of soil, 2.9 Plant analysis: SRM validation is a must. Do the needful.

Number of treatment combination, design, replication need to be disclosed in statistics.

Correlational aspect of Mn, Zn, Fe and S in terms of crop growth needs additional attention with current citations.

Authors are required to include (i) how the farmers will be benefited from the study and (ii) consequences of excess S application on PK cycle.

Table 1. Effect of microbial inoculants and fertilizer application on crop growth parameters.

Table 2-6. Effect of microbial inoculants and fertilizer application on plant macronutrients

Data should be accompanied by letter cases.

Some data should be in figure format

## English check suggested

Reviewer #2: the present study is very informative and of practical use. i congratulate the authors for working on this issue.

the paper need revision before acceptance for publication. the queries have been marked in the paper.

Reviewer #3: The manuscript presents a relevant study on the redox cycling of sulfur via microorganisms in soil, focusing on increasing nutrient bioavailability for canola cultivation. The research was conducted rigorously, with well-structured experiments, appropriate controls, and statistical analysis. The results obtained are solid and support the conclusions that the inoculation of microorganisms (SOB and SRB) along with chemical fertilizers improves plant growth and nutrient bioavailability.

However, some points could be improved:

Introduction Review:

Example of repetition: In the paragraph discussing the importance of sulfur for plant nutrition, there is a repetition of ideas about sulfur’s role in proteins and photosynthesis. The text could be more concise, addressing these points more directly. For example:

"Sulfur is essential for the synthesis of amino acids such as methionine and cysteine, which are crucial for plant growth, as well as playing important roles in the formation of proteins and vitamins." This could be condensed to: "Sulfur is vital for the formation of amino acids like methionine and cysteine, which are fundamental for plant growth and the synthesis of proteins and vitamins."

Discussion:

Example of critical analysis: The discussion mentions that the inoculation of SOB and SRB increased nutrient bioavailability, but it does not address comparisons with other studies that may show different results. It would be interesting to discuss, for instance:

"Although this study showed clear benefits of SOB and SRB inoculation, other studies, such as [Author et al., year], found limited results with similar microorganisms in acidic soils. The variation in results may be attributed to differences in soil characteristics and environmental conditions."

Grammatical and Linguistic Errors:

Example of grammatical error: In some parts, there are phrases that could be clearer. For example, in a section:

"The applicability of the results obtained are evident to increase agricultural productivity." The correct form would be: "The applicability of the results obtained is evident in increasing agricultural productivity." Additionally, phrases like "The effect of SOB and SRB on plants were significant" should be revised to "The effect of SOB and SRB on plants was significant," correcting the subject-verb agreement error.

Supporting Data:

Example of raw data: If the authors mention that SOB and SRB inoculation increased nutrient concentrations like nitrogen (N) and phosphorus (P), it would be helpful to include the raw numeric values, such as:

"The nitrogen concentration in the plant tissue was 1.53% in the ½NPK+SOB+SRB combination." These data should be presented in more detail, perhaps in a supplemental table or a publicly accessible data repository.

Conclusion:

Example of a more robust conclusion: The conclusion could be more detailed by addressing the study’s limitations and suggesting future research areas. An example would be:

"While the results clearly showed the benefits of SOB and SRB inoculation, it would be interesting to conduct field studies to evaluate the effectiveness of these inoculations in different soil types and under varying climatic conditions. Furthermore, the interaction between different microorganisms and fertilizers could be explored in future research to optimize resource use in canola cultivation."

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Reviewer #1: No

Reviewer #2: Yes:  Vivek Sharma

Reviewer #3: No

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Attachments

Attachment

Submitted filename: PONE-D-24-23262 (1).pdf

Redox cycling of sulfur via microbes in soil boosts the bioavailability of nutrients to Brassica napus

PONE-D-24-23262R1

Dear Dr. Alam,

We’re pleased to inform you that your manuscript has been judged scientifically suitable for publication and will be formally accepted for publication once it meets all outstanding technical requirements.

Within one week, you’ll receive an e-mail detailing the required amendments. When these have been addressed, you’ll receive a formal acceptance letter and your manuscript will be scheduled for publication.

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Kind regards,

Mahmood Ahmed

Academic Editor

PLOS ONE

Additional Editor Comments (optional):

Reviewers' comments:

Reviewer's Responses to Questions

Comments to the Author

1. If the authors have adequately addressed your comments raised in a previous round of review and you feel that this manuscript is now acceptable for publication, you may indicate that here to bypass the “Comments to the Author” section, enter your conflict of interest statement in the “Confidential to Editor” section, and submit your "Accept" recommendation.

Reviewer #3: All comments have been addressed

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2. Is the manuscript technically sound, and do the data support the conclusions?

The manuscript must describe a technically sound piece of scientific research with data that supports the conclusions. Experiments must have been conducted rigorously, with appropriate controls, replication, and sample sizes. The conclusions must be drawn appropriately based on the data presented.

Reviewer #3: Yes

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3. Has the statistical analysis been performed appropriately and rigorously?

Reviewer #3: Yes

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4. Have the authors made all data underlying the findings in their manuscript fully available?

The PLOS Data policy requires authors to make all data underlying the findings described in their manuscript fully available without restriction, with rare exception (please refer to the Data Availability Statement in the manuscript PDF file). The data should be provided as part of the manuscript or its supporting information, or deposited to a public repository. For example, in addition to summary statistics, the data points behind means, medians and variance measures should be available. If there are restrictions on publicly sharing data—e.g. participant privacy or use of data from a third party—those must be specified.

Reviewer #3: Yes

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5. Is the manuscript presented in an intelligible fashion and written in standard English?

PLOS ONE does not copyedit accepted manuscripts, so the language in submitted articles must be clear, correct, and unambiguous. Any typographical or grammatical errors should be corrected at revision, so please note any specific errors here.

Reviewer #3: Yes

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6. Review Comments to the Author

Please use the space provided to explain your answers to the questions above. You may also include additional comments for the author, including concerns about dual publication, research ethics, or publication ethics. (Please upload your review as an attachment if it exceeds 20,000 characters)

Reviewer #3: (No Response)

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7. PLOS authors have the option to publish the peer review history of their article (what does this mean? ). If published, this will include your full peer review and any attached files.

If you choose “no”, your identity will remain anonymous but your review may still be made public.

Do you want your identity to be public for this peer review? For information about this choice, including consent withdrawal, please see our Privacy Policy .

Reviewer #3: No

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