""Within 48 hours, I had your classic case of poison ivy on my arm. And as a scientist, I said, 'This is interesting, how bad can it be? I'll just leave this untreated,' " he recalls, sheepishly. "In about two weeks, I had learned just how uncomfortable poison ivy rash could be. Uncomfortable sounds like an understatement. 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. 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. The tricky thing about avoiding poison ivy, Jelesko says, is the plant is highly adaptable and can take many different forms in different environments"