In 2008, for example, researchers reported in the journal Cell that lithium interrupts the activity of a receptor for the neurotransmitter dopamine. It also appears to plump up brain volume, according to a 2011 study in the journal Biological Psychiatry (though this research is hotly contested).
Poison ivy produces an oily chemical (urushiol) onto the surface of its leaves. When people come in contact with poison ivy, the urushiol can cause an allergic skin reaction that produces reddish, itchy, and painful inflammation of the skin (dermatitis). Close relatives of poison ivy plants that produce similar dermatitis symptoms are poison oak and poison sumac.
Poison ivy can take the form of an erect shrub or climbing vine or grow in large colonies along the ground. Poison ivy has aerial rootlets that it uses to attach to the bark of trees. The rootlets have a hairy appearance. Twigs of poison ivy may be covered with fine hairs.n oily resin called urushiol, which is found in all parts of the plant, is what causes skin rashes when people come in contact with it. People vary in their sensitivity to poison ivy, but may become more sensitive after repeated exposure to it. One common misconception is that the poison ivy rash itself is contagious.