Egg yolk components and diagnosing egg allergy in people
What it found
Testing blood for an egg yolk protein called Gal d 6 alongside an egg white protein improved the accuracy of egg allergy diagnosis.
This was found using blood samples from 120 people.
What they found
Studies in people
Sensitivity to multiple proteins
Among the 99 people with egg allergy, nearly 10% reacted to five of the six egg proteins tested. Most patients were sensitive to more than one protein rather than just a single one.
Cross-reactions between proteins
In both the allergic and non-allergic groups, about 30% showed cross-reactivity between two egg yolk proteins and the main egg white protein, Gal d 1. Between the two egg yolk proteins themselves, the overlap was 18%.
Best combination for diagnosis
Combining the egg white protein Gal d 1 with the egg yolk protein Gal d 6 gave the highest diagnostic accuracy. This pair reached an area under the curve of 0.994, outperforming any single protein test.
Antibody levels differed by group
People allergic to egg white had higher antibody levels against four egg white proteins than those without that allergy. People allergic to egg yolk had higher antibody levels against the two egg yolk proteins than the control group.
What the authors conclude
- They conclude that testing for specific egg yolk proteins improves the diagnosis of egg allergy.
- Their results show that combining the egg white protein Gal d 1 with the egg yolk protein Gal d 6 gives the best diagnostic accuracy.
- They note that some people who test negative for standard egg allergy may still react to egg yolk components.
How it was done
Hen's egg allergy is the second most common food allergy, affecting up to 9% of babies. The authors wanted to see if testing for specific proteins in both egg white and egg yolk could improve diagnosis.
The researchers collected blood samples from 99 people with egg allergy and 21 without it. They measured antibodies against six individual egg proteins in these samples. They then compared how well each protein, alone or combined, identified the allergic group.
What it can’t tell you
- This study only looked at blood markers and did not track what happened when people actually ate eggs.
- Because the samples came from hospitals in one city in China, the results might differ in other populations.
Who paid
- Authors work at
- Institute of Hematology & Blood Diseases Hospital, China; Tianjin Medical University, China; Academy of Traditional Chinese Medicine Affiliated Hospital, China
The paper
- Title
- Component resolved diagnosis of egg yolk is an indispensable part of egg allergy
- Type
- Study
- Evidence
- Studies in people
- Summarised from
- Full text
- Cite
- Lunhui H, Yanhong S, Shaoshen L, Huijing B, Yunde L, Huiqiang L (2021). Component resolved diagnosis of egg yolk is an indispensable part of egg allergy. Allergologia et immunopathologia. doi:10.15586/aei.v49i2.31Free full textPubMed 33641288DOI
Summary written 30 Sep 2026. Check it against the paper before it changes what you eat. How we summarise papers · Report an error