The Effect of Cultivation Conditions on Sacha Inchi (Plukenetia volubilis L.) Seed Production and Oil Quality (Omega 3, 6, 9)

Round 1

Reviewer 1 Report

• introduction: Omega-3, Omega-6, and Omega-9should be defined, showing public cognition.
• The nutrition value is related to ratio of PUFA to MUFA, some references could be cited and introduced the relative contents.
• Materials and methods: the detailed dates for seed harvest should be shown, for example days after anthesis.
• In line 185, and  %, please check it.
• In table 3, which month for 1^stmonth, 2^ndmonth and 3^rd
• In table 4, the seeds were from the fruits of which months, if you could test its oil content for each harvest, it will be more interesting
• The same problem for table 5.

Author Response

Dear Reviewer 1,

Thank you for your kind comments regarding our manuscript submission. It really helps us to increase the quality of our manuscript.

Here, we submit our responses to the reviewer's comments for additional information to increase the quality of our manuscript. Please see the attachment.

Thank you.

Author Response File: Author Response.pdf

Reviewer 2 Report

The authors investigated the effect of different cultivation conditions on seed production and oil quality in Sacha Inchi seeds. It is an interesting topic, however, several questions were raised.

• From the Methods part it is not clear, whether the monthly harvested fruits were pooled together before oil was obtained or did you analyse the Sacha Inchi oil obtained from the seeds harvested monthly separately?
• It is also not clear whether you had parallel measurements or did you determine each parameter only once?
• For oil quality analysis the method listed as a Table is not enough. Please specify them! How did you determine fatty acids? Did you use GC-FID or GC-MS? How did you determine ash, protein, carbohydrate and moisture content? Please write them more detailed.
• In Table 2 data of the first harvesting can be seen. The number are data of 1 plant or an average of the included 25 plants? If it is an average (mean), please write SD also. In the footer you write small letters indicate significant differences, did you mean here “the same small letters”? Please correct it. The same question and comment for Table 3.
• Many data, like air-dried seed weight, oil yield and so on, are presented both in tables and in the text. Please avoid this duplication of data.
• By oil yield (Table 4), are these data from the first harvest, or were samples pooled together (as I have asked in my first question)?
• In row 286-7 you wrote that lipid content of large seed is about 45-50%, however no previous data suggest this. How did you measure this? Do smaller seeds have different (lower) lipid content? What does large mean (weight in g or belonging to the upper quartile)?
• In row 310 you summarise that omega-3, omega-6 and omega-9 are essential fatty acids, however oleic acid (C18:1n-9) is NOT an essential fatty acid, only linoleic acid (n-6) and alpha-linolenic acid (n-3). Although oleic acid is also beneficial for human nutrition.
• Row 301: you state that Sacha Inchi seeds contained more unsaturated fatty acids planted in Bogor than planted in Peru, but there is no reference supporting this.

Author Response

Dear Reviewer 2,

Thank you for your kind comments regarding our manuscript submission. It really helps us to increase the quality of our manuscript.

Here, we submit our responses to the reviewer's comments for additional information to increase the quality of our manuscript. Please see the attachment.

Thank you.

Author Response File: Author Response.pdf

Round 2

Reviewer 2 Report

Thank you for your answers. I only have one comment: In Table 2 and 3, insert  that 'data are presented as mean± SD' in the legend.