Giant vesicles, made of lipid bilayers, are widely employed as a paradigmatic cell model. The dynamics of vesicles is intimately coupled to their fluid environment, e.g. when subjected to flow vesicles undergo shape transformations. I study the deformation of a quasi-spherical vesicle in linear flows using analytical solutions and numerical simulations (with Boundary Integral Method). This work aims to elucidate the relation between membrane bending stresses, membrane composition and vesicle behavior near and away from a substrate. I will discuss some parallels between the dynamics of a vesicle and a surfactant-covered drop, as both involve nonlinear coupling of the evolution of shape, amphiphile density and bulk flows. Experimental observations of vesicle adhesion will be also presented.
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