Abstract
Cell membrane fluctuations (CMFs) of the elastic membrane are based on the assumption that the driving force of fluctuations is purely thermal. This chapter introduces a quantitative method to monitor changes in the shape and CMF map of Red Blood Cells (RBCs) as a function of temperature at the single-cell level using label-free digital holographic microscopy (DHM). It shows that thermal-changes can disrupt RBC membrane equilibrium in several ways that can be monitored quantitatively by DHM. Cell membranes are made of phospholipids and more rigid at lower temperatures. They become softer at higher temperatures, even very fluid and unstable at some temperatures above its physiological temperature. Another hypothesis suggests that when the cell's physiological temperature is exceeded, the membrane bilayer will transform. As a result, the growth temperature of the cell is a key determinant of membrane bilayer stability.
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