Effect of Elevated CO2 Conditions on Medicinal Plants

Since the inception of the Industrial Revolution, the global average CO₂ concentration in the atmosphere has rapidly increased. Initially, it was near 280 ppm in the mid-1700s; however, currently, it jumped to the margin of 419.13 ppm by the first week of May 2021. The reasons for such elevated CO₂ concentrations (e[CO₂]) include global warming and anthropogenic activities (human emissions). As per predictions, the most frightening part is that the global atmospheric CO₂ concentration will continue to increase, due to humanity’s continued carbon emissions. At present, the e[CO₂] causes several ill effects on medicinal plants’ growth, production, and metabolism (variety of nutrients (vitamins) and some micro- as well as macro-elements). All this together hampers the survival responses of medicinal plants to other environmental stresses too. To respond to e[CO₂], the medicinal plants quickly alter their transcriptional, translational, cellular, organelle, metabolic, osmotic, physiological, and metabolic profiles. Gathering knowledge about the interplay of negative effects and plant responses is direly needed and has emerged as one of the top priority goals for researchers. Therefore, Chapter 5 is an attempt to highlight the growth changes, carbon/nutrient ratio, and metabolic alteration as well as the production of primary and secondary metabolites in e[CO₂] conditions.