Researchers at Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute developed a regenerated cellulose membrane with peptide ligands that outperformed commercial chromatography columns for purifying mRNA therapeutics. The porous membrane selectively binds and releases large mRNA molecules more efficiently and with higher throughput than traditional resins, addressing a bottleneck in mRNA vaccine and therapeutic production. The team has filed for a patent and is seeking industry partnerships to scale and commercialize the process.