# Smartphone phenotype collection for diagnostic screening of mild cognitive impairment

> **NIH NIH R44** · PARABON NANOLABS, INC. · 2021 · $1,186,625

## Abstract

PROJECT SUMMARY
In this Phase II SBIR project, Parabon NanoLabs will complete the development, validation and
commercialization of CTX, a revolutionary smartphone- and tablet-based cognitive testing
platform for collection and analysis of measurements of cognitive performance (“phenotypes”).
Traditionally, cognitive assessments are performed in a clinic using either simple surveys that
assess only some aspects of cognition or expensive, single-purpose equipment such as eye tracking
stations. Such testing lacks the frequency and precision needed to detect subtle early changes that
signal the onset of mild cognitive impairment (MCI) or early-symptomatic dementia. Instead,
CTX will take full advantage of mobile sensors (e.g., audio, video, touchscreen, and motion) to
enable in-depth cognitive testing anytime, anywhere. Regular use of CTX will allow a clearer
picture of each user's cognitive abilities to emerge, enabling early detection of subtle changes. CTX
is not intended to replace neurologists but instead to extend their reach by allowing regular,
widespread screening for improved disease detection and patient monitoring. The long-range goal
of CTX is to allow aging adults to monitor and manage their cognitive health more effectively and
to provide pre-symptomatic indicators of pending dementia to patients and their clinicians, thus
enabling early intervention and planning.
After a highly successful Phase I project, CTX already enables rapid development of mobile tests
that can capture raw sensor streams in a synchronized fashion and transmit them to a cloud server
for subsequent analysis and reporting. Sophisticated analytics pipelines have been developed to
convert these sensor streams into cognitive phenotypes (e.g., extracting eye movement data from
selfie video taken during a cognitive test). Using the CTX framework, the Parabon team has
already developed an Apple® iOS® mobile app with proof-of-principle tests for assessing verbal
recall, eye movement, motor function, and episodic memory.
In Phase II, we propose to develop two new suites of CTX tests for one-time cognitive impairment
screening and cognitive performance monitoring, as well as phenotype extraction pipelines for
each. We will evaluate tests in normal and affected cohorts to determine usability, user retention
and whether resulting phenotypes enable accurate cognitive assessments by clinicians. Our
specific aims are to (1) Develop new and engaging cognitive tests and pipelines for assessing visual
search and targeting, expressive and receptive language, motor movement and episodic memory;
(2) Validate measures in cognitively normal and impaired cohorts; and (3) Analyze and prepare
data for publication and premarket submissions to the FDA.

## Key facts

- **NIH application ID:** 10255750
- **Project number:** 2R44AG062072-02A1
- **Recipient organization:** PARABON NANOLABS, INC.
- **Principal Investigator:** Steven L Armentrout
- **Activity code:** R44 (R01, R21, SBIR, etc.)
- **Funding institute:** NIH
- **Fiscal year:** 2021
- **Award amount:** $1,186,625
- **Award type:** 2
- **Project period:** 2018-09-30 → 2023-05-31

## Primary source

NIH RePORTER: https://reporter.nih.gov/project-details/10255750

## Citation

> US National Institutes of Health, RePORTER application 10255750, Smartphone phenotype collection for diagnostic screening of mild cognitive impairment (2R44AG062072-02A1). Retrieved via AI Analytics 2026-05-27 from https://api.ai-analytics.org/grant/nih/10255750. Licensed CC0.

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