Rhamnolipids are a class of glycolipid produced by Pseudomonas aeruginosa, amongst other organisms, frequently cited as bacterial surfactants. They have a glycosyl head group, in this case a rhamnose moiety, and a 3-(hydroxyalkanoyloxy)alkanoic acid (HAA) fatty acid tail, such as 3-hydroxydecanoic acid.
Specifically there are two main classes of rhamnolipids: mono-rhamnolipids and di-rhamnolipids, which consist of one or two rhamnose groups respectively. Rhamnolipids are also heterogeneous in the length and degree of branching of the HAA moiety, which varies with the growth media used and the environmental conditions.