Cellular heat injury: are membranes involved?

Temperature has an all pervasive influence on cellular function. In consequence heat damage may occur at multiple sites. This is only one factor that makes the identification of the primary sites of heat perturbation difficult. It is also likely that cellular heat death is the consequence of a time-dependent accumulation of secondary damage that results from the primary lesion(s). It is important therefore to determine whether observed damage is a primary consequence of heating or a secondary 'knock-on' effect. The case will be considered for a role of cellular membranes as being a cellular site of the primary lesion in heat injury.