HGF and neuromuscular disease: Current treatment methods for these diseases are extremely limited; their efficacy, if any, is marginal, and safety is questioned, as in the case of riluzole or valproic acid, respectively.47, 48 Given the safety and efficacy records of pCK-HGF-X7 (VM202), shown in several clinical studies for other indications, further studies are warranted to investigate the potential of using HGF, and in particular, plasmid DNA vectors expressing HGF, for various neuromuscular diseases.