For Some, Sleep Style Serves as Harbinger of Depression  April
13, 2001  The search for the genetic roots of depression has led
scientists to the bedroom, where they've discovered that people
with a particular type of sleep pattern and a family history of
depression are twice as likely to become depressed as relatives
who don't sleep the same way. The link is true even in family
members who have no history of the disease themselves and who
feel absolutely fine.  The findings come from a team led by
University of Rochester Medical Center psychologist Donna Giles,
Ph.D., who uses sleep as a window to study the origins of
depression. Her latest work, part of a study that stretches back
to 1985, builds on the link between sleep and depression to try
and identify a specific brain chemical that may be at the root
of depression for some patients.  Giles and her colleagues have
found that the speed with which people fall into dream sleep can
indicate people who are more prone to depression. In families
where at least