Thank you for submitting your manuscript for publication in XXX. It has been examined by expert reviewers whose reviews are enclosed. The reviewers have expressed serious reservations about this work that I don’t believe could be addressed through a standard major revision. In light of the comments received, I am unable to accept the manuscript for publication in XXX.
However, if further experimentation, analysis, and revisions allow you to address the referees concerns in full we would be happy to consider a revised manuscript that included such data and analysis, assuming no related data is published in the interim. We ask that you submit your revision by XXX. This revision should address the reviewers’ comments and include a point-by-point response to the concerns.