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Progentec Merges With Digital Health Tools Firm Karate Health

NEW YORK – Autoimmune disease diagnostics firm Progentec Diagnostics and digital health tools company Karate Health announced this week they have merged.

Financial and other terms of the deal were not disclosed.

The new firm will retain the Progentec name and be based in Oklahoma City, where Progentec is currently headquartered. The combined company will offer laboratory testing and digital technologies for diagnosing and managing lupus, multiple sclerosis, and other autoimmune diseases.

Progentec develops diagnostic tests for autoimmune diseases. Last week it announced a $225,000 grant from the National Institutes of Allergy and Infectious Diseases to advance blood biomarker-based laboratory tests for systemic lupus erythematosus.

Karate Health, which had offices in the Washington, D.C. area develops digital health tools. According to its website, it has a Facebook messenger bot for tracking and managing fatigue; an app for stool movement tracking for irritable bowel syndrome; and a mobile and web app for lupus management.

Karate Health Cofounders Arif Sorathia and Brett Adelman will join Progentec where they will lead digital initiatives, including "the exploration and development of digital therapeutics"; expanding direct-to-patient toolkits; and refining data capture tools to meet US Food and Drug regulations, the companies said.

By combining Progentec and Karate Health's capabilities, "we will deliver unparalleled and actionable information to the clinicians tasked with managing autoimmune diseases," Progentec CEO Mohan Purushothaman said in a statement.

In October, Progentec acquired LupusCorner, a health management platform for people with systemic lupus erythematosus and lupus nephritis that was offered by Karate Health. At the time, Progentec said that Sorathia and Adelman would join the firm. In an email, Progentec Mohan Purushothaman said that upon completion of that deal, the two joined the company only on a part-time basis and are now full time with Progentec.

He added that the prior acquisition of LupusCorner was only for its assets. The acquisition has now been completed, Purushothaman said.