BDNF and autism: We grouped the patients according to the severity of autism, and as shown in Fig. 7, all three patient groups showed significantly higher levels of BDNF compared to the healthy control group (t > 3.34, p < 0.01), with higher amounts detected in patients with severe autism (CARS ≥37): severe autism mean = 1170 pg/ml; standard deviation = 372.7; healthy control sample means = 460.4 pg/mL; and standard deviation = 146.78.