Effect of climate change on plant secondary metabolism: An ecological perspective

Climate change includes the instantaneous and rapid alteration of numerous important environmental parameters that regulates the dynamics of the ecosystem. This rapid change may cause direct and secondary physiological effects on plants including alteration in plant secondary metabolism. Plant secondary metabolites are generally referred to as compounds that are essential for the plant to interact with its environment and also used for therapeutic purposes. These also play an important role in defense mechanisms, act as important signaling molecules under different environmental stresses, and thus play an important role in the adaptation of plants to extreme environments. Various environmental factors such as temperature, light, ultra-violet B radiation, tropospheric O3, salinity, and soil water content can affect the biosynthesis and accumulation of secondary metabolites in plants. This chapter will summarize the effect of various environmental factors on secondary metabolism and pave a way to acquire important bioactive compounds from plants.