Vesicles in a flowing fluid, used to model red blood cells, exhibit a shape transition as a function of their deflation and the surrounding flow. See also Viewpoint in Physics. Selected for Editors' Suggestions.

From the article:

Why Do Red Blood Cells Have Asymmetric Shapes Even in a Symmetric Flow?
Badr Kaoui, George Biros, and Chaouqi Misbah
Phys. Rev. Lett. 103, 188101 (2009)

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