Patent ID: 8101823

Claim:
A method of controlling a genetically-modified multi-cellular plant organism or a part thereof, comprising the following steps: (a) providing a multi-cellular plant organism or a part thereof, whereby cells of said multi-cellular plant organism or said part contain a heterologous nucleic acid encoding a protein, wherein cells of said multi-cellular plant or part thereof contain an additional heterologous nucleic acid; and (b) causing expression of the protein from said heterologous nucleic acid in at least some of said cells by delivering a polypeptide to the multi-cellular plant organism or part thereof, said polypeptide rendering said heterologous nucleic acid expressible, said polypeptide having the activity of a site-specific recombinase rendering said heterologous nucleic acid expressible; wherein said protein (i) contains a protein portion enabling leaving a cell and entering other cells of said multi-cellular plant organism or a part thereof, wherein said protein portion is a domain of a viral movement protein, or a domain of a viral coat protein; (ii) causes expression of said protein from said heterologous nucleic acid in cells containing said heterologous nucleic acid by a DNA modifying activity of a segment of said protein, said segment having the activity of a site-specific recombinase, wherein the enzymatic activity of said protein is the same as the enzymatic activity of said polypeptide; and (iii) controls transcription of an RNA-viral amplicon from said additional heterologous nucleic acid contained in cells of said multi-cellular plant organism or a part thereof; wherein, a. the sequence encoding the RNA-viral amplicon is, in said additional heterologous nucleic acid, separated from a promoter by a sequence block that precludes an operable linkage between the sequence encoding the RNA-viral amplicon and the promoter; said sequence block being flanked by recombination sites such that said block can be cut out by a recombinase recognizing said recombination sites; or b. in said additional heterologous nucleic acid, a portion of a sequence necessary for transcription of the RNA-viral amplicon is in flipped orientation and flanked by recombination sites such that said sequence portion can flip back in correct orientation by a recombinase recognizing said recombination sites; thereby, operable linkage for transcription of the sequence encoding the RNA-viral amplicon can be established by the action of said protein.