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We recently found lytic action of the truncated yncE gene. When the truncated yncE gene of Salmonella enterica serovar Paratyphi A was expressed in Escherichia coli DH5α under the control of the Ara promoter, bacterial growth was markedly inhibited. In the present study, we characterized this lytic action. The N-terminal 103 aa of YncE, containing a signal peptide, was demonstrated to be essential for inhibition. Microscopic observation showed that the bacterial envelope of E. coli was damaged by the expression of truncated yncE, resulting in the release of cytoplasmic content and the formation of bacterial ghosts. The addition of MgSO or spermine, which is the stabilizer of bacterial membrane structure, dramatically reversed the cell lysis induced by the toxic truncated YncE. In contrast, the lytic action was significantly enhanced by the addition of SDS or EDTA. Our data indicated that the toxic truncated YncE could cause cell lysis by the disruption of the bacterial membrane. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]