Decision Letter to: Novel transgenic pigs with enhanced growth and reduced environmental impact / by Xianwei Zhang et al.

The manuscript reports the production and characterization of pigs that were transgenic for several microbial enzymes expressed from the salivary glands. The expression of these enzymes is demonstrated, and the desired biological effects can be observed. Fecal nitrogen and phosphorous outputs were reduced by 20 to 46% , growth rate was improved by about 24% . The feed conversion rate was also improved by 12 to 14% . The authors claim that this is a promising approach to improve feed efficiency and to reduce emissions into the environment. Zhang et al., present a very interesting and important pig model for the expression of multiple microbial transgenes to improve the digestibility of pig feed and to reduce the excretion of N and P into the environment.