Elevated CO2 as a Biostimulatory Approach to Enhance the Nutraceutical Potential of Ginseng

The continued rise in atmospheric carbon dioxide (CO2) concentrations presents a strategic opportunity to harness climate change variables within the framework of precision agriculture. Despite the well-established role of elevated CO2 (eCO2) in enhancing biomass accumulation, its largely underexplored potential to drive the biosynthesis of secondary metabolites represents a more significant and promising avenue of investigation. This review appraises the physiological and molecular mechanisms through which eCO2 enrichment redirects metabolic flux toward secondary metabolite biosynthesis, with far-reaching implications for plant productivity and resilience. Special emphasis is placed on critically evaluating the scientific literature to explore how CO2-mediated modulation of the carbon–nutrient balance (CNB) can be strategically leveraged to enhance secondary metabolite yields. Moving from observation to application, integrated strategies are proposed to exploit CO2 enrichment in advanced bioreactor systems and controlled-environment greenhouses as a means of maximizing bioactive compound production in ginseng. Pinpointing the regulatory sweet spots at which carbon saturation elicits maximum ginsenoside expression opens a promising avenue for engineering ginseng cultivation systems with sustainable potency and superior bioactivity. Though the full molecular architecture of these pathways in Panax awaits elucidation, converging evidence from related plant systems furnishes a credible mechanistic scaffold for future research.