John Jelesko now dons a Tyvek suit and two pairs of gloves when he's wallowing in poison ivy. If you think you've touched a plant, or unfortunately know you have, follow these tips to alleviate the problem. Up close, it becomes clear that this is a nightmare of nature. From afar, it looks like it could be an evergreen. Poison ivy can take over a dead tree, like this one on the Virginia Tech golf course. The tricky thing about avoiding poison ivy, Jelesko says, is the plant is highly adaptable and can take many different forms in different environments. The experience sparked years of research into a plant he calls a "familiar stranger." He has studied the chemical, urushiol, that triggers that tell-tale rash, and the plant's biology overall. Jelesko says he barely slept while fighting the urge to "claw my itching flesh off." Eventually, he went to his family doctor, who prescribed oral steroids. Uncomfortable sounds like an understatement. "In about two weeks, I had learned just how uncomfortable poison ivy rash could be." And as a scientist, I said, 'This is interesting, how bad can it be? I'll just leave this untreated,' " he recalls, sheepishly. "Within 48 hours, I had your classic case of poison ivy on my arm.
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So at the end of the day, as he coiled the cord around his palm and elbow, he inadvertently launched a career-bending science experiment.
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What he didn't realize was that his power cable had been dragging through poison ivy. The Virginia Tech professor was cutting up a downed tree with an electric chainsaw.
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It was a close encounter in 2012 that made microbiologist John Jelesko take an interest in poison ivy. Microbiologist John Jelesko has learned not to take any chances when he touches poison ivy.