A 44-year-old man comes to the emergency department with a 3-day history of fever, chills, malaise, dyspnea, and a cough productive of "greenish" sputum. He has no prior medical problems and has never been hospitalized. He has a 25-pack-year smoking history and drinks 4-5 beers a week. His temperature is 39.4 C (103 F), blood pressure is 130/80 mm Hg, pulse is 98/min, and respirations are 20/min. On examination, dullness to percussion, crackles, and egophony are present at the right lung base. The remainder of the examination is normal. Chest x-ray shows a dense infiltrate occupying the entire right lower lobe. Which of the following most likely accounts for the color of this patient's sputum?
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