ERC1 and infection: Corroborating this hypothesis, the early root colonization (ERC) effector gene ERC1, which is located on a core chromosome and encodes a secreted putative cellulose-binding protein [68], was expressed both at early and later time points of infection in ∆kmt6a, whereas expression in the WT strain was high at 2 DPI but plummeted at 6 DPI (Supplementary Fig. S22A), as described previously [68].