DMD and Duchenne muscular dystrophy: We tested this novel therapy in the mdx and mdx/scid mice models of DMD and confirmed long-term DEC cell engraftment, which correlated with a significant increase in dystrophin expression and functional improvements in cardiac, diaphragm, and gastrocnemius muscles confirmed by echocardiography, plethysmography, and standard muscle strength test [28,29,38].