Characterization of chemical composition and prebiotic effect of a dietary medicinal plant Penthorum chinense Pursh

•Qualitative and quantitative analysis of polyphenols in P. Chinense by UPLC-HR-MS and UHPLC-QqQ-MS.•Alteration of composition of gut microbiota by P. Chinense.•Enriched gut health-promoting bacteria by P. Chinense with enhanced metabolic resilience, suggesting a prebiotic effect.•Significantly increased antioxidant capacity in vivo by P. Chinense. Penthorum chinense Pursh is a dietary medicinal plant widely distributed in Asia-Pacific countries. The present study aims to profile the chemical constituents of P. chinense and investigate its prebiotic role in modulating gut microbiota. Fifty polyphenolic compounds were rapidly identified using UPLC-HR-MS. Total flavonoid and phenolic contents of P. chinense were 46.6% and 61.3% (w/w), respectively. Thirteen individual polyphenols were quantified, which accounted for 33.1% (w/w). P. chinense induced structural arrangement of microbial community in mice, showing increased microbiota diversity, elevated Bacteroidetes/Firmicutes ratio and enriched gut health-promoting bacteria. After a one-week drug-free wash, most of these changes were recovered, but the abundance of some beneficial bacteria was further increased. The altered composition of gut microbiota enriched several metabolic pathways. Moreover, P. chinense increased antioxidant capacity in vivo. The results suggest that polyphenol-enriched P. chinense modulates gut microbiota and enhances antioxidant capacity in mice toward a beneficial environment for host health.