Most terrestrial plants, including crops, engage in beneficial interactions with arbuscular mycorrhizal fungi. Vital to the association is mutual recognition involving the release of diffusible signals into the rhizosphere. Previously, we identified the maize $no\; perception\; 1$ ($nope1$) mutant to be defective in early signalling. Here, we report cloning of $ZmNope1$ on the basis of synteny with rice. $NOPE1$ encodes a functional homologue of the $Candida\; albicans$ $N$-acetylglucosamine (GlcNAc) transporter $NGT1$, and represents the first plasma membrane GlcNAc transporter identified from plants. In $C.\; albicans$, exposure to GlcNAc activates cell signalling and virulence. Similarly, in $Rhizophagus\; irregularis$ treatment with rice wild-type but not $nope1$ root exudates induced transcriptome changes associated with signalling function, suggesting a requirement of NOPE1 function for presymbiotic fungal reprogramming.