Additionally, a study comparing MHC diversity of two species of opossum (Gracilinanus microtarsus and Marmosops incanus) determined that M. incanus showed low levels of diversity at DAB loci and high parasite load whereas G. microtarsus had higher levels genetic diversity at DAB loci and lower parasite load, highlighting the importance of maintaining diversity in MHC genes to respond to infection of a wide range of pathogens (Meyer-Lucht et al. 2010). Here, HLA-C is linked to infection.