The chaperonin CCTα is required for efficient transcription and replication of rabies virus.

Negri bodies (NBs) are formed in the cytoplasm of rabies virus (RABV)-infected cells and are accompanied by a number of host factors to NBs, in which replication and transcription occur. Here, it was found that chaperonin containing TCP-1 subunit alpha (CCTα) relocalizes to NBs in RABV-infected cells, and that cotransfection of nucleo- and phospho-proteins of RABV is sufficient to recruit CCTα to the NBs' structure. Inhibition of CCTα expression by specific short hairpin RNA knockdown inhibited the replication and transcription of RABV. Therefore, this study showed that the host factor CCTα is associated with RABV infection and is very likely required for efficient virus transcription and replication.