It has been shown that bamboo leaf flavone (BLF) displays biological and pharmacological activities in mammals. However, the effects of BLF on broiler gut microbiota and related immune function have not been investigated. The aim of this study was to test our hypothesis that BLF can improve the health status of broilers by modulating the gut microbiota. A total of 300 one-day-old Arbor Acres (AA) broilers were used to characterize their gut microbiota and immune status after feeding diet supplemented with BLF. The V4 hypervariable region of the 16S rRNA gene from cecal bacteria was sequenced via the Illumina MiSeq platform. The Immune status and related parameters were assessed, including the immune organ index (the spleen, thymus, and bursa), serum concentrations of IL-2 and INF-γ, and spleen IL-2 and INF-γ gene expressions. The results showed the BLF diet had an Immune enhancement effect on broilers. In addition, BFL caused the changes of the gut microbial community structure, resulting in greater proportions of bacterial taxa belonging to Lactobacillus, Clostridiales, Ruminococcus, and Lachnospiraceae. These bacteria have been used as probiotics for producing short chain fatty acids in hosts. These results indicate that BLF supplement improves immune function in chicken via modulation of the gut microbiota. Flavonoids are polyphenolic compounds that ubiquitously present in plants. Flavonoid-rich foods and flavonoid supplements have been found to modulate immune function by inducing cytoprotective effects 1 , restoring lymphocyte proliferation 2 , and preventing cells apoptosis in mammals 3. The flavonoid extracted from bamboo leaves (so-called bamboo leaf flavone, BLF), mainly including orientin, homoorientin, vitexin, and isovitexin 4 , have been confirmed to have multiple biological activities, such as scavenging oxygen radicals 5 , enhancing immunity 6 , and possessing anticancer 7 , antibacterial 8 , antiviral 9 , and antioxidant functions 10. So, it has been widely used as drug substances, anti-aging products, cosmetics, and feed stuffs in human. However, its uses and roles in livestock production are limited 11. The ban and restrictions on the use of antibiotics in livestock production have directed researches to investigate natural or organic alternatives to antibiotics in plants (e.g. BLF) with the potential roles to promote growth and health as well as production performance such as meat, milk, egg production 11. The microbiota communities in the gut play significant roles in promoting health status and productivity in chickens 12 by modulating their immune system, inhibiting pathogenic colonization, and promoting detoxification and digestion 13. Recent studies have reported that gut microbiota involve in transforming flavonoid into phenolic acids, which can be easily absorbed in mice 14. Huang et al. 15 reported that flavonoids extracted from plants including quercetin, catechin, and puerarin had impact on the relative viability of the gut microbiota, which implies that dietary flavonoids supplements...