Takeda Pharmaceuticals U.S.A. and Cognition Kit Limited, a joint venture between Cambridge Cognition Holdings PLC and Ctrl Group Limited, announced a collaboration to pilot the use of a specially designed app on an Apple Watch wearable to monitor and assess cognitive function in patients with Major Depressive Disorder (MDD).

Cognitive testing provides the opportunity to detect and understand the pattern of cognitive symptoms in patients with MDD. The Cognition Kit app is designed as a step forward in assessing those symptoms, advancing patient assessment and monitoring outside of the lab and into everyday life to help maximize patient engagement and potential treatment.

The study will involve 30 participants, aged 18-65 with a clinical diagnosis of mild to moderate depression who have been prescribed an antidepressant for Major Depressive Disorder. The present study aims to evaluate feasibility, compliance and to understand how measures of mood and cognition on wearable technology compare to more traditional neuropsychological testing and patient-reported assessments. The output of the study is expected in the first half of 2017.

“By combining wearable technology with world leading neuroscience, we’ve created an app that collects real-time passive and active high-frequency mental health data,” Jenny Barnett, PhD, Cognition Kit, said in a statement. “Being able to access data regularly from daily life can help clinical decision making. Healthcare professionals can obtain patient data and increase patient engagement in their treatment.”

The collaboration is the first contract signed by Cognition Kit Limited since launching the wearable cognitive technology in 2016, with significant interest already gained from a number of commercial partners.