Minireview The role of selective breeding and biosecurity in the prevention of disease in penaeid shrimp aquaculture Shaun M. Moss a,⇑ , Dustin R. Moss a , Steve M. Arce a , Donald V. Lightner b , Jeffrey M. Lotz c a Oceanic Institute, 41-202 Kalanianaole Highway, Waimanalo, HI 96795, USA b Department of Veterinary Science and Microbiology, University of Arizona, Tucson, AZ 85721, USA c Gulf Coast Research Laboratory, University of Southern Mississippi, Ocean Springs, MS 39564, USA article info Article history: Available online 13 March 2012 Keywords: Penaeid shrimp Specific Pathogen Free Selective breeding Disease resistance Biosecurity abstract About 3.5 million metric tons of farmed shrimp were produced globally in 2009 with an estimated value greater than USD$14.6 billion. Despite the economic importance of farmed shrimp, the global shrimp farming industry continues to be plagued by disease. There are a number of strategies a shrimp farmer can employ to mitigate crop loss from disease, including the use of Specific Pathogen Free (SPF), selec- tively bred shrimp and the adoption of on-farm biosecurity practices. Selective breeding for disease resis- tance began in the mid 1990s in response to outbreaks of Taura syndrome, caused by Taura syndrome virus (TSV), which devastated populations of farmed shrimp (Litopenaeus vannamei) throughout the Americas. Breeding programs designed to enhance TSV survival have generated valuable information about the quantitative genetics of disease resistance in shrimp and have produced shrimp families which exhibit high survival after TSV exposure. The commercial availability of these selected shrimp has ben- efitted the shrimp farming industry and TSV is no longer considered a major threat in many shrimp farm- ing regions. Although selective breeding has been valuable in combating TSV, this approach has not been effective for other viral pathogens and selective breeding may not be the most effective strategy for the long-term viability of the industry. Cost-effective, on-farm biosecurity protocols can be more practical and less expensive than breeding programs designed to enhance disease resistance. Of particular impor- tance is the use of SPF shrimp stocked in biosecure environments where physical barriers are in place to mitigate the introduction and spread of virulent pathogens. Ó 2012 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved. Contents 1. Introduction ......................................................................................................... 247 1.1. Specific Pathogen Free shrimp ..................................................................................... 248 1.2. Breeding for disease resistance..................................................................................... 248 1.3. On-farm biosecurity ............................................................................................. 249 References .......................................................................................................... 250 1. Introduction Shrimp belonging to the family Penaeidae include commercially important species inhabiting tropical and sub-tropical waters around the world (Bailey-Brock and Moss, 1992). These shrimp are cultured primarily in Asia and the Americas and generate sig- nificant foreign exchange. According to the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO), an estimated 3.5 million metric tons of farmed penaeid shrimp were produced in 2009 with an estimated value greater than $14.6 billion (FAO, 2011). Despite the economic importance of farmed shrimp, the global shrimp farming industry continues to be plagued by diseases resulting in production inefficiencies and reduced profits for shrimp farmers. Historically, commercial farmers have relied on the capture of wild shrimp to stock their ponds (Moss et al., 2001; Lightner et al., 2009). Shrimp are caught as postlarvae from coastal nursery habitats and stocked directly into ponds for growout or are collected offshore as broodstock and spawned in captivity to 0022-2011/$ - see front matter Ó 2012 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved. http://dx.doi.org/10.1016/j.jip.2012.01.013 ⇑ Corresponding author. Address: Oceanic Institute, 41-202 Kalanianaole High- way, Waimanalo, HI 96795-1820, USA. Fax: +1 808 259 9762. E-mail addresses: smoss@oceanicinstitute.org (S.M. Moss), dmoss@ oceanicinstitute.org (D.R. Moss), sarce@oceanicinstitute.org (S.M. Arce), dvl@ email.arizona.edu (D.V. Lightner), jeff.lotz@usm.edu (J.M. Lotz). Journal of Invertebrate Pathology 110 (2012) 247–250 Contents lists available at SciVerse ScienceDirect Journal of Invertebrate Pathology journal homepage: www.elsevier.com/locate/jip