The International Society for Biosafety Research (ISBR) organized the bi-annual International Symposium on the Biosafety of Genetically Modified Organisms (ISBGMO). ISBGMO 14 took place from June 4th to 8th, 2017, in Guadalajara, Mexico. This meeting represented the premier scientific conference for academic, government, and private sector scientists who focused on the science of environmental risk assessment (ERA) for genetically engineered plants, animals, and microorganisms. This Research Topic in Biosafety of Genetically Modified Organisms provided a forum for publications resulting from the symposium. The articles in the Topic included thought pieces on future research needs for biosafety, research results, and discussions of the current ERA paradigm and its application to new and emerging genetic engineering applications. Additionally, articles were encouraged from session organizers to share their opinions regarding the outcomes and future directions for the topics discussed in their sessions.

• When Policy Meets Practice: The Dilemma for Guidance on Risk Assessment Under the Cartagena Protocol on Biosafety
• Genetically Engineered Crops: Importance of Diversified Integrated Pest Management for Agricultural Sustainability
• The Current Status and Development of Insect-Resistant Genetically Engineered Poplar in China
• Phenotypic Expression and Stability in a Large-Scale Field Study of Genetically Engineered Poplars Containing Sexual Containment Transgenes
• Readiness for Environmental Release of Genetically Engineered (GE) Plants in Uganda
• The Integration of Science and Policy in Regulatory Decision-Making: Observations on Scientific Expert Panels Deliberating GM Crops in Centers of Diversity
• Bt Eggplant Project in Bangladesh: History, Present Status, and Future Direction
• Transgenic American Chestnuts Do Not Inhibit Germination of Native Seeds or Colonization of Mycorrhizal Fungi
• “Born to Run”? Not Necessarily: Species and Trait Bias in Persistent Free-Living Transgenic Plants
• Evaluation of the Impact of Genetically Modified Cotton After 20 Years of Cultivation in Mexico
• Novel Features and Considerations for ERA and Regulation of Crops Produced by Genome Editing
• Assessing the Likelihood of Gene Flow From Sugarcane (Saccharum Hybrids) to Wild Relatives in South Africa
• Recovering the Original Intentions of Risk Assessment and Management of Genetically Modified Organisms in the European Union
• Management of Field-Evolved Resistance to Bt Maize in Argentina: A Multi-Institutional Approach
• Off-Patent Transgenic Events: Challenges and Opportunities for New Actors and Markets in Agriculture
• A General Safety Assessment for Purified Food Ingredients Derived From Biotechnology Crops: Case Study of Brazilian Sugar and Beverages Produced From Insect-Protected Sugarcane
• Policy-Led Comparative Environmental Risk Assessment of Genetically Modified Crops: Testing for Increased Risk Rather Than Profiling Phenotypes Leads to Predictable and Transparent Decision-Making
• Capacities for the Risk Assessment of GMOs: Challenges to Build Sustainable Systems
• Lack of Detection of Bt Sugarcane Cry1Ab and NptII DNA and Proteins in Sugarcane Processing Products Including Raw Sugar
• A Curriculum-Based Approach to Teaching Biosafety Through eLearning
• No Interactions of Stacked Bt Maize with the Non-target Aphid Rhopalosiphum padi and the Spider Mite Tetranychus urticae
• Overexpressing Exogenous 5-Enolpyruvylshikimate-3-Phosphate Synthase (EPSPS) Genes Increases Fecundity and Auxin Content of Transgenic Arabidopsis Plants
• Toxicological and Biochemical Analyses Demonstrate the Absence of Lethal or Sublethal Effects of cry1C- or cry2A-Expressing Bt Rice on the Collembolan Folsomia candida