Assessment of cellular response to drug/nanoparticles conjugates treatment through FTIR imaging and PLS regression study

•FTIR-PLS approach is a promising tool to define the sensitivity of cancer cells to drugs.•AuNPs were used as effective biosensors for studying cellular response to drug.•FTIR imaging on single-cell level enabled the assessment of biochemical alterations of cellular components.•Drug/AuNPs conjugate affects the nucleic acids in all of the studied cell types.•MCF-7 cell line is particularly sensitive to drug treatment.