Insomnia, as a common sleep disorder, exhibits a rising incidence rate annually, with its pathogenesis closely linked to gut microbiota dysbiosis. Currently, most of the clinical methods for the treatment of insomnia have limitations and adverse reactions. A review of recent domestic and international literature indicates that Lianzixin (Nelumbinis Plumula) possesses multi-component, multi-pathway, and multi-target characteristics. It exerts sedative and hypnotic effects by regulating the gut microbiota composition, influencing intestinal barrier function, microbial composition, and their metabolites, while also suppressing inflammatory responses and modulating immune homeostasis. However, its specific molecular mechanism network has not yet been fully elucidated. This review elaborates on mechanism of gut microbiota in occurrence and development of insomnia and the regulatory effects of Nelumbinis Plumula, establishes a systematic analysis of “Nelumbinis Plumula-gut microbiota-insomnia” axis, and provides theoretical support and reference for developing Nelumbinis Plumula-based insomnia treatments and microbiota-targeted drugs, advancing the collaborative prevention and treatment of insomnia through traditional Chinese medicine and Western medicine from basic research to precision clinical therapy.

insomnia  /  gut microbiota  /  Nelumbinis Plumula  /  liensinine  /  rutin  /  quercetin  /  short-chain fatty acides