Situation

More than six million Americans are living with Alzheimer’s disease. By 2050, this number is projected to rise to nearly 13 million. Cognition Therapeutics is a clinical-stage biotech company working to develop treatments for Alzheimer’s and other neurodegenerative and neuro-ophthalmic disorders. Cognition enlisted our help to develop the branding for two of their current clinical trials for Alzheimer’s and dementia with Lewy bodies (DLB).

Approach

From the beginning, we knew we wanted to incorporate the neuron already in the Cognition logo into the logos for the new studies. Neurons are nerve cells that send signals to and from the brain and maintaining the continuity of that design element throughout unifies the branding.

For the SHIMMER study, our exploration incorporated half-tone patterns representative of the vagueness and confusion often associated with DLB. Patients often report hallucinations, which we interpreted as a shimmer effect in the logo design. The shimmer is also an element that is meant to convey light and hope.

For the SHINE study, we wanted the neuron to serve as a beacon of hope for Alzheimer’s patients deciding to participate in a clinical trial. The use of purple is also a nod to the signature color for Alzheimer’s awareness. Purple represents dignity and power, which we wanted study participants to feel when looking at the branding.

Success

The final logos and color palettes were developed and deployed as part of the branding package for Cognition. Both studies are currently enrolling patients and additional information can be found on the Cognition and study websites.