Analytical and numerical results for the pulsatory liposome

In this work, we consider a special and interesting bionic object - the pulsatory liposome, which are an unilamellar liposome (lipid vesicle) filled with aqueous solution of osmotic solute. This liposome is introduced in a hypotonic aqueous medium of large dimensions and, due to osmosis process, it has a dynamic and cyclic evolution. The swelling of the liposome during a cycle is described by a differential equation. The liposome relaxing and all the processes which contribute to the liposome relaxing and its coming back to the initial size (pore evolution and internal solution delivery) are described by three differential equations. For each cycle this set of differential equations may be integrated using analytical and numerical methods. The pulsatory liposome can be likened to a biophysical engine. We discuss the results obtained by both methods that we can apply in domains such as astrobiology.