Abstract: Antimicrobial peptides,which are alkaline polypeptides with antimicrobial activity in the body,are important components of the natural defences of the most living organisms against invading pathogens.Antimicrobial peptides have an extensive inhibitive ability and a good application prospect in agriculture,medicine and other fields.The paper reviewed researches of antimicrobial peptides in recent years,summarized the influences of antimicrobial peptides on growing performance and immunity of the aquatic animals,put forward the application prospect,and analyzed the problems of application in aquatic animals in order to provide the technical support and theoretical basis for the future studies.