When growth states dominate, protein production and turnover is high. Protein stability is essential for the continued health of cells and tissues. It takes lots of  energy to maintain protein stability (proteostasis). When cells are starved for energy, does that trigger toxic distruption of proteostasis? Or--could it be that aging is the result of protein homeostasis demanding too much energy? Fluorescent lines, like the one shown here in green (AM140-Morimoto Lab), allow us to visualize and quantify failure of proteostasis in real time. Mathematical modeling of processes, like those shown below, may help us determine if, when, and where proteins are likely to begin aggregating as they lose stability.