Biosurfactants are surface-active microbial products that have numerou
s industrial applications. The molecular genetics of two structurally
diverse biosurfactants, a glycolipid and a lipopeptide, were the first
to be characterized. Recent advances include the identification of th
e structural genes for a second lipopeptide, and the isolation of a ge
ne responsible for enhanced emulsification activity of a high molecula
r weight biopolymer. New insight has also developed in the regulatory
mechanisms of the originally described biosurfactants, both of which a
re controlled by quorum sensing, a mechanism bacteria use to monitor c
ell density.