In vitro inhibition of oral Candida albicans by chicken egg yolk antibody (IgY).

This study was conducted to measure Candida albicans-specific chicken egg yolk antibody (IgY) inhibition of fluconazole-sensitive and resistant strains of C. albicans in order to assess potential use in the prevention and treatment of oral candidiasis. In this study, laying hens were immunized, and IgY was extracted by water dilution. The Minimal Inhibitory Concentrations (MICs) of IgY for inhibiting C. albicans growth were determined using the broth microdilution method from the CLSI M27-A2 protocol. Fluconazole (FLC) was used as the control. The results were analyzed with the chi(2) test. The anti-Candida titer of anti-C. albicans IgY was 1:12,000. The concentration of the IgY extract that effectively inhibited the growth of C. albicans was between 1.25 g/l and 5.0 g/l, and the efficacy rate was 82.98% during the observed 24-48 h time period. No correlation was recorded between the drug resistance of FLC and growth inhibition by IgY. It was concluded that anti-C. albicans IgY inhibited the growth of C. albicans in vitro and there was no correlation between the drug resistance of FLC and the growth inhibition by IgY (P > 0.99).