Currently, the infection with Helicobacter pylori affects about half of the world’s population, and the most common therapy to treat H. pylori is the first line clarithromycin-based triple therapy or the quadruple therapy. However, drug resistance, eradication in a low level, high rate of reinfection, and gastrointestinal side effects among the causative organisms for H. pylori infection pose a critical challenge to the global health care community. Therefore, new approaches to treat H. pylori infections are urgently needed. Chicken egg yolk constituting a source of immunoglobulin Y (IgY) has attracted noticeable attention for its advantages of cost-effective extraction, minimization of animal harm and suffering, and induction of no specific resistance and is, therefore, being regarded as an alternative therapy for H. pylori infection. This review is intended to summarize various H. pylori antigens for IgY preparation in terms of their application, mechanism, and limitations.

The aim of this study was to estimate the therapeutic potential of specific egg yolk immunoglobulin (IgY) on dermatophytosis caused by Trichophyton rubrum. The IgY was produced by immunizing hens with cell wall proteins of T. rubrum, extracted from eggs by PEG precipitation and then purified by ammonium sulfate precipitation. The cross-reactivity (CR) with other fungi, growth inhibition on T. rubrum in vitro and therapeutic effect on T. rubrum infection in BALB/C mice of the specific IgY were then evaluated. Anti-T. rubrum cell wall proteins IgY (anti-trCWP IgY) presented a certain degree of cross-reactivity with different fungi. In the in vitro and in vivo activity researches, Anti-trCWP IgY showed a significant dose-dependent growth inhibitory effect on T. rubrum in vitro and a significant dose-dependent therapeutic effect on T. rubrum infection in BALB/C mice.