Abnormal sense of touch may play role in autism

In mice, mutations in autism-related genes in skin nerve cells linked to anxiety, poor social skills

diagrams of mouse paths

AROUND AND AROUND  Compared with normal mice, mice that carried a mutated form of the autism-related Mecp2 gene in their peripheral nerve cells avoided the center of an enclosure, a sign of anxiety. 

L. Orefice et al/Cell 2016

Most people think that autism is a disorder of the brain.