Ways to cause membrane damage to microalgae and yeast?
To get to the membrane of these species you first need to get past a formidable cell wall. The methods listed below are therefore more aimed at making cells permeable but the membranes must sustain some damage in the process.


At our lab we regularly use glass bead transformation for microalgae
transformation. The microabrasion allows DNA to go in so I imagine
the membranes must be damaged somehow.
I've also used hypotonic media (depending on the strain) to swell
cells close to their bursting point. I imagine they become rather
permeable at this point since they let several dyes in that are
otherwise excluded.