Binaries in which mass-transfer episodes through Roche-lobe overflow occur can affect (sometimes drastically) the evolution of the components as well as the orbital evolution. The formation of compact objects in the context of binary systems and their subsequent role as accretors can provide information about some important properties of these objects.
In this seminar, we will first review the main channels for the formation of binaries containing a neutron star or a black hole. Afterwards, we will discuss two particular cases of interest: the mass-radius relation for white dwarfs coming from close binary systems, and the possibility that black holes in Low-Mass X-ray Binaries have been born (or not) with zero spin.