Here are some of the latest health and medical news developments, compiled by the editors of HealthDay:

Most S. Korean Study Stem Cell Lines Reportedly Were Faked

South Korean cloning researcher Hwang Woo-suk has agreed to withdraw a controversial research paper because most of the stem cells produced for the study published in Science journal were faked, says a doctor who provided Hwang with human eggs for the research.

In an interview Thursday, Roh Sung-il told KBS television that Hwang told him he would ask Science to withdraw the paper, which appeared in June and attracted worldwide attention, the Associated Press reported.

The study described how cloning was used to create individual cell colonies for 11 patients and was hailed as a breakthrough achievement.

Roh, chairman of the board at Mizmedi Hospital, was one of the study co-authors. In another interview, Roh told MBC television that nine of the 11 embryonic stem cell lines Hwang claimed to have created were fake and the authenticity of the two remaining cell lines was unknown.

MBC also aired an interview with a former researcher who said Hwang ordered him to fabricate photos in order to make three stem cell colonies look like 11 separate colonies, the AP reported.

Earlier this week, University of Pittsburgh researcher Gerald Schatten asked Science to remove his name as a senior author of the study because he doubted the research accuracy.

Hwang could not be reached for comment. Seoul National University will conduct an internal probe into Hwang’s research.

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Bird Flu Vaccine Prototype Shows Promise

A bird flu vaccine prototype based on the deadly H5N1 virus shows promise, according to preliminary tests by scientists at the French pharmaceutical company Sanofi-Pasteur.

They companies added an ingredient called alum to the vaccine and found that it boosted the potency of lower doses. This means that it may be possible to stretch supplies of the antigen — a crucial element of the vaccine — and make more flu shots available during a pandemic, the Associated Press reported.

The new vaccine was tested on 300 people and the Sanofi-Pasteur team found that they were able to prompt adequate immune responses by using two injections of vaccine that each contained only 30 micrograms of antigen.

A short supply of antigen has been one of the primary challenges in creating a vaccine that could be used in a worldwide flu pandemic, the AP reported.

The prototype vaccine’s ability to prompt an immune response does not prove that the vaccine will protect against infection by a bird flu virus. However, it is considered a first step.

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Illinois Top Court Overturns $10 Billion Verdict Against Philip Morris

A $10 billion verdict against tobacco giant Philip Morris USA on cigarette labeling was overturned by the Supreme Court of Illinois on Thursday.

The 4-2 decision countered a 2003 lower court ruling against Philip Morris in a class-action lawsuit on behalf of 1.1 million people, which accused the company of fraudulently misstating the amount of tar and nicotine in so-called light cigarettes, The New York Times reported.

The Illinois Supreme Court ruled that the claim against Philip Morris could not stand because the labeling on the light cigarettes was specifically authorized by the U.S. Federal Trade Commission (FTC).

“We conclude that the FTC could, and did, specifically authorize all United States tobacco companies to utilize the words ‘low,’ ‘lower,’ ‘reduced,’ or like qualifying terms, such as ‘light,’ so long as the descriptive terms are accompanied by a clear and conspicuous disclosure of the tar and nicotine content in milligrams of the smoke produced by the