A 27-year-old man had a rhinoplasty. A nasal tampon was placed to control the bleeding. Approximately 8 hours later, he developed headache, muscle aches, and abdominal cramps with diarrhea. He then developed an erythematous rash (resembling sunburn) over much of his body, including the palms and soles. His blood pressure is 80/50 mm Hg. The nasal tampon remained in place. His liver enzyme tests were elevated, and there was evidence of moderate renal failure. This patient’s illness was likely to be caused by which of the following?

A. Lipopolysaccharide
B. Peptidoglycan
C. A toxin that is a superantigen
D. A toxin that has A and B subunits
E. Lecithinase (alpha toxin)