Background:

Shrimp farming is one of the pillars of aquaculture. Among the main shrimp species, Peneaus vannamei stands out, which represents around 70% of the world's shrimp production. The control of genetic diversity is essential to improve a selective breeding program in the shrimp industry. The volume of data on genetic markers in Peneaus vannamei has been growing in the last few years.

Aim.

To review and analyze the information related to genetic studies in this shrimp species using the most widely known molecular markers. Several different studies on genetic characterization through molecular markers in white-leg shrimp culture were reviewed.

Development:

This study also tackled the analysis of microsatellite and Single Nucleotide Polymorphism (SNP) markers of this Penaeus shrimp and the genetic characterization of shrimp populations in Cuba using molecular markers. This paper also includes different reviews of research studies of SNP trait-associated markers in Peneaus vannamei shrimp culture.

Conclusions:

Microsatellite and SNP markers were found to play an important role in the genetic characterization of Penaeus vannamei shrimps, as the most powerful tools for genome analysis. Furthermore, the genetic polymorphism markers associated with phenotypic traits can be used in future selective breeding applications in shrimp farming mainly in developing countries.